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Production of cereals, dried pulses and oilseeds in 2019

Cereal harvest nearly twice as large as a year ago when drought led to crop failure

Statistical news from Statistics Sweden and Swedish Board of Agriculture 2019-11-15 9.30

Total cereal yield for the year estimated at 6.1 million tonnes. This is 15 percent more than the average in the five most recent years, and 88 percent more than the previous year, when drought and hot weather led to crop failure. Nevertheless, dry weather has led to lower crop yields in some places this year as well.

Most parts of the country have had more normal levels of rainfall this year, and the crop yield per hectare for cereal crops was higher than the five-year average at the country level. The areas with high yield autumn-sown crops were also large. However, in parts of the south-east and in a few other places the crops suffered from drought.

Winter wheat areas reached record sizes and the yield per hectare was on par with the record-high yield in 2015. On the other hand, the statistics are slightly more uncertain than usual, since some farmers in Svealand and southern Norrland have not yet completed their harvest due to persistent autumn rains. Therefore, they were not been able to submit information on this year’s harvest in time to Statistics Sweden.

Large areas and high hectare yields of winter wheat led to increased total cereal yield

More than half of this year’s total cereal harvest consists of winter wheat. The total yield of winter wheat is estimated at 3.3 million tonnes this year. That is more than twice as much compared to 2018, and an increase of 29 percent compared to the five-year average.

Winter wheat is the crop with the highest yield per hectare in Sweden, and increased areas of winter wheat have significant impact on the total cereal harvest. Between 2018 and 2019 the autumn wheat area increased by 44 percent and the yield per hectare increased by 61 percent at the country level.

Large winter rape area contributed to increased rape and turnip rape total harvest

The preliminary estimate of the total yield of rape and turnip rape is 374 800 tonnes. This is 72 percent more than in 2018, 21 percent more than the five-year average and on par with the large rape and turnip rape total harvest in 2017. This increase is due to an increase of 99 650 hectares in cultivation area for winter rape, as well as an increase in the hectare yield of rape and turnip rate crops compared to the low levels the previous year.

Yield of peas matches five-year average

The total yield of peas is estimated at 68 100 tonnes, which is 39 percent more than a year ago and on par with the five-year average. This year’s total yield of field beans was 55 700 tonnes, which is 60 percent more than the drought year 2018, but 32 percent less than the five-year average.

Publication

A more detailed report of this survey and the results for individual crops is published in Statistical Report JO19 SM 1901, available under Agriculture, forestry and fishing and on the Swedish Board of Agriculture website at www.jordbruksverket.se under Statistics.

Statistical databases

Time series with the final harvest statistics are available in Statistics Sweden’s statistical database Statistics Sweden's Statistical Database and the Swedish Board of Agriculture’s statistical database www.jordbruksverket.se. Time series and harvest statistics are available from 1913 onwards for some of the crops.

Next publishing will be

The preliminary statistics being published now are based information from a subsample of 1 106 farms. More accurate results, based on data from the entire sample of 4 423 farms, will be presented on 13 December in the Statistical Report JO 19 SM 1902. The results will then also be published by county level and for each of the eight production areas of agriculture.

Information on autumn sown areas in 2019 will be published on 29 November in JO 18 SM 1901.

Statistical Database

More information is available in the Statistical Database

Feel free to use the facts from this statistical news but remember to state Source: Statistics Sweden.

Statistical agency

Swedish Board of Agriculture

Telephone
+46 36 15 50 00
E-mail
statistik@jordbruksverket.se

Enquiries

Ann-Marie Karlsson

Telephone
+46 36 15 59 33
E-mail
ann-marie.karlsson@jordbruksverket.se

Producer

SCB, Agriculture and Energy Statistics Unit

Address
701 89 Örebro

Enquiries

Gerda Ländell

Telephone
+46 10 479 68 07
E-mail
gerda.landell@scb.se