Ukraine's grain harvest may reach 55-60 million tonnes in 2015 - expert

KYIV, March 24 /Ukrinform. Preliminary forecasts for grain harvest in 2015/16 marketing year amounts to 55-60 million tonnes.

Expert of state-run Derzhzovnishinform enterprise Olga Yakubyna told reporters during a press conference, Ukrinform reported.

"We know that farmers faced with many obstacles, problems last year. These problems included rise in agricultural chemistry, fuels and lubricants costs. Some farmers report that they will reduce their planted fields and increase their fallow land. In principle, the estimates for gross grain crops stand at about 55-60 million tonnes," said Olga Yakubyna.

However, experts predict an increase in soybean acreage at the expense of sunflower acreage.

"As for sunflower seeds, we can say that sown acreage dwindle, but the fields will grow soybeans because soybean output brings a higher return than that of sunflower,” said the expert Yevhen Tomashevsky.

He noted that soybean production has a lower cost when compared to sunflower.

As a reminder, the grain crop volume totaled 63.8 million tonnes in 2014/15 according to the State Statistics Office.

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