Mixed prospects for UK wheat
Crop StorageWheat 30/01/2024
Wheat markets are set to remain tight this year despite a global harvest which is expected to increase, suggest the latest estimates. Initial forecasts for the coming season suggest rising consumption will more than offset slightly higher yields from a slightly lower wheat area – causing global wheat stocks... Read more
Gene-editing techniques have uncovered a temperature tolerance trait that could protect wheat from the increasingly unpredictable challenges of climate change. Researchers say UK growers could benefit from the discovery – made at the Norwich-based John Innes Centre during experiments examining wheat fertility in plants exposed to high and low... Read more
A Cambridgeshire grower has soil mapped his farm to help future-proof the business against economic and environmental challenges. Farm director Jack Smith, of AG Wright and Son (Farms) Ltd, grows 250ha of potatoes across 1,850ha of varying soil types – from black fen peat around Haddenham, near Ely; to... Read more
A high-yielding early maize variety could help growers overcome the risk of late drilling and delayed harvests caused by wet spring and autumn weather. Bred by MAS Seeds and marketed by Elsoms Seeds, Mojito could tick all the boxes for farmers wanting to avoid a repeat of the weather-related... Read more
A big increase in spring cropping this season is expected to give growers a welcome opportunity to boost grass weed control. More spring wheat, barley and oats are forecast to be drilled this year after the wet autumn and winter storms left fields unworkable and flooded. Many growers still... Read more
RAGT Seeds UK has appointed Camille Florin as commercial development agronomist to support the company’s forage, cover crop and amenity seed portfolios. Ms Florin will be responsible for delivering key variety-specific information to merchant customers to help their growers make better decisions when purchasing seeds. Well known as a... Read more
Nutritional benefits from over-winter cover crops are heavily influenced by destruction method, suggests new research. The advantages of over-winter covers are well-accepted – and include soil health, structure, fertility, weed suppression and reductions in nutrient losses. Other benefits include biodiversity – and some financial return if grazed by livestock.... Read more
Five winter oilseed rape varieties from LS Plant Breeding (LSPB) promise growers a wide choice of yield, agronomic characters and marketing outlets. Based on seed yield, Turing is the highest yielding variety on the Recommended List for 2024/5, says the company, being just one percentage point off the highest... Read more
Two milestone winter cereal varieties from breeder Syngenta have been added to the AHDB Recommended Lists for 2024-25 – one winter wheat and one winter barley. Winter wheat SY Cheer is a potential bread-making variety rated as a provisional Group 1 by UK Flour Millers (UKFM). It is also... Read more
Winter wheat LG Beowulf and winter barley LG Caravelle are the highest yielding varieties to join the 2024/25 AHDB Recommended List. Both by plant breeder Limagrain, they join LG Armada which is the highest yielding oilseed rape variety on the UK Recommended List. In addition, high yielding maize variety... Read more



















