United Kingdom
July 4, 2011
Wheat and oilseed rape plantings are up according to this year’s HGCA Planting and Variety Surveys, with increased arable area overall for 2011, but the lowest planting of winter barley since 1994.
The HGCA Planting Survey, conducted by the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board’s (AHDB) Market Intelligence team, shows the GB oilseed rape area has risen by 9% in comparison to 2010 – giving a total area of 0.696M Ha, the largest area ever recorded.
“Following last year’s increase of 14% in the oilseed rape area, we have seen another 9% increase in the plantings for harvest 2011 indicating the strong profitability for the crop at the time of planting,” explains AHDB’s Cereals and Oilseeds Senior Analyst Jack Watts, who manages the surveys.
The survey has also revealed steady increases in the total wheat and barley areas planted, with GB wheat showing a 1% increase on 2010, taking the total area from 1.928M Ha to 1.941M Ha and total barley area increasing by 2% from 0.894M Ha to 0.915M Ha.
The total cereal and oilseed rape area has seen a 2% rise, taking it up to 3.662M Ha. “This was largely driven by the profitable forward prices seen at planting time, but it remains to be seen if this is at the expense of pulses, root crops or temporary grassland,” added Mr Watts.
“Increases in the cereal and oilseed rape area are largely in the North and West areas of GB, indicating that growers are either looking to capitalise on strong prices, or simply protect themselves from higher input costs by growing more home-grown feed.
“The overall increase in total barley area has come as a result of strong malting premiums for spring barley in the run-up to last year’s harvest, and the difficult harvesting conditions for root crops this autumn may also have contributed,” he said.
However, winter barley has seen a further 8% decline from last year, taking it to 0.344M Ha, the lowest area grown since Defra started collecting specific winter and spring barley data in 1994.
Mr Watts reminded growers that with oilseed rape increasing in frequency within rotations, growers should be aware of the potential agronomic implications, including disease build-up.
“The competitiveness of oilseed rape this harvest will be maintained by relatively strong prices, but growers should be aware of the risks for next season,” he said.
Scotland
A 3% rise in the total Scottish cereals area indicates the trends have continued north, taking the total area of cereals planted in Scotland from 0.422M Ha to 0.433M Ha. The wheat area in particular has risen to 0.116M Ha, an increase of 4% from the 2010 wheat area and the second highest wheat area planted in Scotland since 1992.
Mr Watts commented: “This increase in wheat production, coupled with a 4% rise in the spring barley planting indicates that Scotland can go some way towards compensating drought-lost production in England, but a lot will depend on the conditions at harvest.”
Planting Survey
| GB, 000 ha |
2010 |
2011 |
% change from 2010 |
| Wheat |
1928 |
1941 |
1 |
| Spring Barley |
519 |
571 |
10 |
| Winter Barley |
376 |
344 |
-8 |
| Total Barley |
894 |
915 |
2 |
| Oats |
122 |
110 |
-9 |
| Oilseed Rape |
641 |
696 |
9 |
2011 Variety Survey Results
Market prices are also affecting variety choice, with nabim Group 4 varieties demonstrating an increase from 51% in 2010 to 54% of all wheat grown in GB, according to the HGCA Variety Survey.
AHDB Senior Analyst, Jack Watts, added: “Although milling varieties still remain important in some regions, levels of interest in Group 4 varieties are continuing to rise, indicating that growers are looking to maximise yields and capitalise on high prices.
“The greatest increases to the Group 4 area have been seen in the North-East, particularly Yorkshire, where Group 4 varieties now account for 69% of the wheat area grown. This change may have resulted from recent difficult harvests producing disappointing results from the higher quality wheats.”
HGCA Exports Manager, Sarah Mann, commented: “Levels of export varieties have remained stable from 2010, but this year we have seen increases in nabim Group 3 plantings, with the total share rising to 15%. In the South-East, almost 90% of the wheat area is occupied by varieties meeting the ukp and uks specifications for export, and the Group 3 share has increased from 16% to 25%.”
“Growers are seeking greater flexibility in their marketing and this has been reflected in the increase in Group 3 plantings,” added Mr Watts.
The picture in Scotland
Reflecting the picture in North-East England, the nabim Group 4 wheat variety area has significantly increased in Scotland taking it from 55% to 62% of the wheat area grown in South Scotland, and taking it from 65% to 72% of the total wheat area in North Scotland.
“As with other parts of the UK, we are seeing a decrease in the total area of nabim Group 2 and 3 varieties in Scotland, making way for the Group 4’s, which are higher yielding and still attracting a good price” said Mr Watts.
Wheat varieties
| nabim Group |
2010 GB plantings
|
2011 GB plantings
|
% change from 2010
|
|
Group 1
|
17%
|
17%
|
0
|
|
Group 2
|
15%
|
11%
|
-4
|
|
Group 3
|
11%
|
15%
|
4
|
|
Group 4
|
51%
|
54%
|
3
|
For a full breakdown of the survey results, including by region, visit www.hgca.com/markets in the ‘survey results’ section.
The annual HGCA planting survey covers both winter and spring plantings for the 2011 harvest, with the results compared to Defra’s final estimates for 2010.
The survey results are based on completed survey forms from over 4000 growers across Great Britain. A full breakdown of the survey results can be found at www.hgca.com/markets
HGCA is the cereals and oilseeds division of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB). HGCA aims to deliver a world class arable industry through independence, innovation and investment. It funds research, knowledge transfer, marketing, export and promotional activities for the cereals and oilseeds sector in the UK. Find out more at www.hgca.com 
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