Wet weather conditions sweeping through northern Europe for much of October are making life difficult for farmers in many EU states attempting to get into fields for winter plantings.

The EU’s crop monitoring body MARS has warned that wet conditions are further hampering the progress of winter crop sowings in northern Europe, which were already delayed by the late harvesting period.

The wet weather is also hindering progress of this season’s maize crop across Europe, with MARS lowering its estimate for average maize yields across the EU to 6.9t/ha. Despite the revised forecast in yields, maize prices fell lower this week.

EU maize prices traded on the Euronext exchange in Paris were down almost 1% in the last week to €148/t. Meanwhile, wheat prices were marginally lower at just under €162/t. Rapeseed prices traded in Paris were slightly higher in the last week rising above €367/t.

Chicago

In the US, the annual corn harvest rumbles on with drier weather conditions helping combines get through fields. The harvest pressure is weighing on market prices however. Since the start of October, corn prices from the Chicago grain market (CME) have bottomed out at $138/t (€118/t). Despite the expectation of a record harvest this year, soya bean prices have rallied slightly in the last month by almost 2% to sit at $360/t (€307/t) this week.