Spring barley and winter wheat yields look to be significantly lower than last year so far this harvest.

Most spring barley yields appear to be falling in the 2.2 to 2.4t/ac bracket, with a few above 3.0t, but many below 2.0t/ac so far. Many early winter wheat yields were between 3.0 and 3.5t/ac, but higher yields are now being reported as the harvest progresses. It would seem yield and quality reports from crops being cut this week are better than the earlier crops.

While these yield levels will be very disappointing for growers, the fact that later barley yields seem to be increasing with protein decreasing leaves some scope for optimism.

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Grain quality is generally good, with some exceptions. Barley-specific weights are mainly in the 64-68KPH bracket, with screenings only an occasional problem at malting intakes.

High protein levels have been an issue at malting intakes and have caused rejection, especially at some locations. But our maltsters suggest that more recently harvested crops are showing lower protein and that is a help.

This is an even bigger issue for Malting Company intakes where the protein cut-off is 11.5%, whereas Boortmalt is accepting up to 12% for this harvest.