Record Area of Winter Wheat Planted
Issued 29th January 2002
The excellent sowing conditions last autumn have led to an all-time record of winter wheat area in 2002, the Teagasc National Tillage Conference in Carlow was told today (Wednesday, 30th January).
Jim O'Mahony, Chief Tillage Adviser with Teagasc, told the conference that a total of 90,000 hectares of winter wheat have been sown. This is almost double the level in 2001 and significantly higher than the previous record of 73,000 hectares in 1992.
Mr O'Mahony said that the trend towards large specialised tillage growers is continuing. Total numbers of tillage farmers has declined from 50,000 in 1985 to 15,500 at present. The number of growers with more than 50 hectares of tillage has risen from 400 in 1985 to 1,500 at present. He predicted that within the next decade there would he up to 1,000 specialised growers with close on 200 hectares each.
He said that official EU figures now confirm that Irish tillage growers are top of the league in cereal yields. Irish wheat yields in 2001 averaged 8.4 tonnes per hectare, the highest in the EU. Spring barley yields, at 6.2 tonnes per hectare, also topped the EU table.
"That our tillage farmers can out-perform those in the renowned tillage belts of East Anglia in the UK and the Paris Basin in France is testament to their skill and to the use of the latest technology developed by Teagasc at Oak Park and adapted from elsewhere," he said.
Environment
Dr Owen Carton of the Teagasc Research Centre at Johnstown Castle, Wexford, told the conference that new Teagasc fertiliser recommendations for cereal growing will not compromise yield potential. He said nitrate leaching is likely to be the major environmental issue for tillage farming.
"The Nitrate Directive, which is expected to be implemented shortly will focus attention on the issue of nitrate leaching. Some farmers may have to consider the use of cover crops, such as mustard, during the winter period in order to address the environmental risks from nitrate leaching," he said.
Markets
Kieran Carvill, a grain marketing expert from Hamburg, told the conference that the past three years have seen a significant reduction in the overall world stocks of grain. This is due to historically low output in the US, Canada, Argentina and the EU, the areas which normally produce the main exportable surplus of quality milling wheat.
"This reduction in world grain stocks could have upsides for Irish cereal growers who are highly efficient and well placed to capitalise on any upturn in the market", he said.
He said that energy production is likely to be the single biggest growth area for grain and sugar demand over the next decade and beyond.
"Ethanol, which is made from sugar beet or wheat, is the only real ecologically friendly alternative to fossil fuels and with increasing pressure on the environment and on self-sufficiency in fuel it is increasingly becoming a viable option. However, ethanol is still not competitive with oil and its development and usage will require a political push at EU level", he said.
