October 13 2008, 10:48

Belarus: 79 % of potato lands harvested

According to data of the Ministry of agriculture and food of Belarus, as of October 13, 2008, in the agrarian organizations of Belarus, potatoes were harvested throughout 38.240 ha that is 79 % from the plan, reported Fruit-Inform project.

According to the operative data, as of the reporting date, 789.420 tonnes of potatoes were harvested.

The average yield of potatoes totaled 206.43 c/ha. The highest yield reached the level of 237.69 c/ha.

As BELTA reported, the agrarian enterprises plan to harvest 1.8 mln. tonnes of potatoes, up 279 tonnes as compared to the last year. At the moment purchasing of potatoes for interseasonal period is in progress, 56.700 tonnes are to be supplied to the stabilization funds. The farms are supplying the raw material for starch and syrup plants.

Taking into account the harvest from private farms and agrarian farms, 8.75 mln. tonnes of potatoes will be harvested in Belarus.

During the last year, 793.000 tonnes of potatoes were produced in the agrarian farms, including 366.300 tonnes which were harvested in the particularized farms and the participants of the program on potato-growing development. The yield exceeded 210 c/ha that is up 26 c/ha as compared to the data throughout the Republic. The gross crop totaled 8.5 mln. tonnes. 60.700 tonnes were purchased for the interseasonal period that is up 10 % from the plan.

Belarus takes the eighth place in the world on gross production of potatoes and the first place on production per head.