The highest wheat yield ever was recorded by the NFU's harvest survey which was published today.
It predicted the average wheat yield for the UK harvest 2014 to be a record high, following a summer of near perfect growing conditions.
It is predicted that the 2014 UK Wheat harvest will weigh in at over 8.6 tonnes per hectare, the largest ever and 16 per cent more than 2013 – the biggest uplift in 30 years.
But as regulation from the EU Commission removes and restricts vital active ingredients in crop protection products, the NFU continues to lobby for a different way of regulating to allow for more harvests like this year.
NFU combinable crops board chairman Mike Hambly said: “This year’s wheat harvest shows how dependent crop yield is on the weather and, as extreme weather events become more frequent, how we as farmers can cope with this.”
“Unfortunately, we are at the mercy of the weather but fungicides and insecticides are essential tools allowing us to protect our crops in adverse weather. Many of these are under threat from EU Commission regulation and as this legislation hits, in turn, will compromise both the quality and potential yield of wheat."
“Farmers have an important job to do, we need the right regulation in place and access to appropriate chemistry to ensure we can all enjoy and benefit from an abundant and healthy harvest, such as we have had this year. Optimising our productivity allows us to impact less on the environment and meet our responsibilities to the growing global demand for food.”
