An average wheat harvest of about 2 tonnes per hectare is expected this year. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, about 400,000 hectares were sowed with winter crops in the 2019-2020 season, but the drought and this spring’s frosts affected about 215,000 hectares: 25% in the northern districts and 60-80% in the central and southern districts, IPN reports, quoting a press release of the Ministry.

Minister of Agriculture, Regional Development and Environment Ion Perju made a working visit to Sângerei and Florești districts to see how the grains of the first group are being harvested. Farmers in Rădoaia village of Sângerei district told him that the impact of the hydrological drought can be seen in each field and they project that the harvest will be twice lower than last year. However, they hope to get an average quantity of 4 tonnes of wheat per ha and of about 2 tonnes of barley per ha.

The minster was shown several fields sown with triticale, which better resisted the drought and is expected to yield 3-4 tonnes per ha.

In the second half of the day, Ion Perju visited the villages Băhrinești and Ghindești of Florești district, where the farmers also started to harvest the wheat. “Last week, I visited several localities in Basarabeasca district. The drought in southern Moldova affected 80% of the fields and the harvest there will be much lower than last year. The forecasts in northern Moldova are optimistic. This year, we will have an average wheat harvest in the country of about 2 tonnes per ha,” stated the minister.