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EU Corn Crop to Fall to Third Lowest in Decade, Strategie Says

A crop of corn cobs damaged in a storm in Italy. (Francesca Volpi/Bloomberg)

(Bloomberg) -- The European Union’s corn production in 2024-25 will be the third lowest in a decade, due to deteriorated yields in eastern Europe. 

Around 58 million tons of corn will be produced in Europe, according to analysis firm Strategie Grains. With harvest underway, “yield outlooks have deteriorated sharply in central Europe, and once again in Romania and Bulgaria,” it said in a report. 

Scorching weather hit corn crops in eastern Europe at a critical time over summer. Forecasters have since cut output expectations, with Strategie’s being one of the lower estimates. 

The firm also forecasts an increase in imports of the grain. Europe will “simultaneously have to contend with very limited supply in Ukraine; it will therefore be more heavily reliant on Brazilian and Canadian corn,” according to the Strategie note. 

Overall grain production in Europe is seen declining after all crops faced weather-related challenges this season. For soft wheat there is a significantly smaller harvest is confirmed for the EU “along with sharp year-on-year falls in Russia and, on a smaller scale, Ukraine.” 

©2024 Bloomberg L.P.