Australia
February 20, 2007
Summer crop production is forecast
to fall by nearly 60 per cent in 2006-07 as most of the main
growing areas in southern Queensland, northern New South Wales
and the Riverina remain in the grip of drought, the February
issue of ABARE’s
Australian Crop Report reveals.
‘Production is forecast to fall to around 1.9 million tonnes,
making it the smallest summer crop in over 20 years,’ said Mr
Phillip Glyde, Executive Director, ABARE when releasing the
report today.
Severe ongoing drought conditions experienced throughout the
major cropping areas of Australia, particularly since August
2006, resulted in significant depletion of soil moisture
profiles and the lowest water storage levels on record.
The very dry spring and lack of irrigation water caused total
summer crop area to be cut by half in 2006-07, to 743 000
hectares.
‘Sowing conditions for grain sorghum crops were less than ideal,
and rainfall during December and January was well below
average,’ Mr Glyde noted.
The total area planted to grain sorghum is estimated to be 427
000 hectares in 2006-07, less than half the record area sown
last year. Forecast grain sorghum production of around 996 000
tonnes is less than half of that produced last season.
The lack of irrigation water for rice growing in 2006-07 has
resulted in the area planted to rice falling to 12 000 hectares
– nearly 90 per cent below the area planted last year. Rice
production is forecast to also be down 90 per cent to around 106
000 tonnes
The estimated 143 000 hectares sown to cotton in 2006-07 is 57
per cent below that planted in 2005-06, and the smallest area
since 1983-84. Production of cotton lint is forecast to be down
58 per cent to around 250 000 tonnes.
‘Reflecting one of the driest winter cropping seasons on record,
winter crop production in 2006-07 is estimated to have fallen by
more than 60 per cent to 15.7 million tonnes,’ Mr Glyde said.
Wheat production is estimated to have fallen by 61 per cent to
9.8 million tonnes and barley by 62 per cent to 3.7 million
tonnes. Canola production is estimated to have fallen by 64 per
cent to 513 000 tonnes in 2006-07.
Report:
http://www.abareconomics.com/publications_html/crops/crops_07/cr07_feb.pdf
|
|
