In a press conference, the minister presented a report on the harvest until Wednesday. Some 758,000 tons of barley were harvested, more than the forecast 712,000 tons, as well as 5.79 million tons of wheat and rye, from 83% of the farmed area, compared to the estimated 6.71 million from the entire area.
Winter barley has yielded 310,000 tons from 98% of its farmed area, compared to the estimated 278,000 from the entire area, while spring barley has so far yielded 155,000 tons from 43% of the area, compared to the 368,000 tons estimated for the entire area.
The oats harvest yielded 80,000 tons from 25% of land; the entire area is estimated to produce 300,000 tons. Some 748,000 tons of rapeseed were harvested, compared to the estimated 646,000 tons.
According to the MARS Bulletin drafted by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre, Romania’s yield per hectare is above the average in the last five years for most crops, and the wheat, barley and potato harvests exceed last year’s yield.
“Romania should be an exporter and not an importer of food products,” said Tabara.
The minister also said exports by April 30 amounted to EUR947 million, from EUR610 million last year, while imports amounted to EUR1.4 billion, compared to EUR1.16 billion.
He added that the total area of land farmed in Romania is two million hectares larger than in previous years and the value of agricultural land will increase in the near future.