Farmers are expected to cut up to 15% of the crops, due to the lack of market

2024-03-26 10:29:00, Ekonomi CNA

The lack of market and the selling price of wheat below cost affected the reduction of the areas planted with wheat in the main areas of the field of Korça and Myzeqe.

This year, the situation is expected to be similar for corn crops. After April 15, the corn planting season starts.

Due to the lack of sales market, farmers are expected to reduce crops even with corn, according to seed companies.

"Even for corn, the situation is the same as for wheat, the unsold amount is high. For this reason, this year with the beginning of the production season, it is expected that the corn crops in the Korça area will be 10 to 15% less compared to last year", says Vasfi Sherifi, representative from AGROVAS-SHE, the seed production and trading company. , seedlings and agricultural inputs in the village of Pojan in Korça.

According to INSTAT data, in 2022 the area of ??land planted with corn was 56.6 thousand ha. Compared to 2021, the area of ??land planted with corn fell by about 3%.

The lack of a market led many farmers across the country to reduce their wheat crops.

In the area of ??Korça, according to agronomists and seed sales companies, the land surfaces with this season's wheat crops have decreased by 30 to 40% compared to last year. While farmers in the area of ??Myzeqe claimed that compared to years they have reduced the areas planted with wheat by up to 70%.

Due to the disruption of the food chain supply by the Russia-Ukraine war and to promote the country's food independence for wheat production, in July 2022 for the first time the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MBZHR) approved the special subsidy measure direct in the amount of 30,000 lek in support of farmers who produce over 1 ha of wheat.

The measure encouraged the increase of crops up to 40% more than 2022, while the price of wheat reached 50 allek kg. In the market, wheat this year is being asked to be bought at a price below 27 ALL per kg. For agronomists, the selling price is below the cost of production. Due to the low price, many farmers are keeping unsold stocks of wheat, while others are selling it as animal feed.

Vasfi Sherif, representative from AGROVAS-SHE, claims that the quantities of grain sold for animals are few, since this product is not widely used in animal husbandry. Barley is mostly used. For this reason, according to him, some farmers in the Korça area have started to increase barley crops for use in livestock.

According to INSTAT data, the area of ??land planted with barley was 5,597 ha. Compared to 2021, the areas planted with barley increased by 10%.

This year, wheat was not included in the national scheme for providing direct subsidies. While it will continue to be supported by the provision of oil without excise duty. Barley, rye and oats are also supported by the excise duty-free oil scheme./Monitor