August 8 2003, 14:06

Belarus will harvest by 1 mln t less grain than initially projected - AgMin

An official, responsible for crops farming, in the Belarusian Ministry of Agriculture and Food has informed that the grain harvest in the country's state-controlled agricultural organisations (kolkhozes) is expected at the level of 4.8 million tonnes. Grain harvest with private peasants will contribute another 500,000 tonnes. Thus, the total crop with all categories of the country's grain producers will make 5.3 million tonnes, which is by about 1 million tonnes less than the initial projections.

According to the ministry's data, as of August 8 grains and pulses in the country (except maize) have been harvested from 878,010 hectares, which is 41.8 percent of the area to be harvested. The amount of collected grains has been 2,373,770 tonnes, with average yield constituting to the moment 2.77 tonnes per hectare. The yield is by 0.1 tonne per hectare higher than last year, the ministry informs.

This year's sugar beet crop is expected in the amount of 2.6 to 3 million tonnes, while in previous years it was usually around the mark of 1.5 million tonnes, the ministry's official said. This year the sown area has been increased by 50 percent. The collected crop will allow fully providing the local sugar refineries will domestic raw material, he said.

At the same time, instead of 90,000 tonnes of rapeseeds that the ministry initially expected to harvest, the actual crop of this culture will be just around 50,000 tonnes, because a considerable part of winter rape plantings was lost to weather.

The information was provided by "Belorruskaya Delovaya Gazeta".