Drought will have an impact on grain harvests

Wheat in full growth does not have enough water, and the heat promises to last a long time. The drought sweeping across France will therefore “have an impact on cereal production,” the Agriculture Ministry warned on Monday.

“Winter crops such as wheat or barley, which are currently in the development stage, are beginning to experience situations that may affect yields,” it was noted following meetings of the Ministries of Agriculture and Ecological Transition with water departments and agricultural industry specialists. world. “This will have an impact on grain production,” says the Ministry of Agriculture, even if “it is too early to make an accurate assessment.”

FNSEA, the majority agricultural union, issued an alarmist observation. “No region was left behind. Every day we see floors cracking. Yesterday I was with a farmer in Puy de Dome, he is watering his wheat. If this continues, then those who have the opportunity to irrigate will survive, but the rest will have a sharp drop in yield,” said the organization’s president, Christiane Lambert. “From October to November, Portugal and Spain experienced severe droughts that spread to Occitania and Provence, as well as along the Rhone Valley. Unusually this season, drought has affected the north of the Loire. ” Météo-France recalls a “heat episode” that, although not unprecedented, is “remarkable for its precocity, duration and geographical extent.”

Wheat yield loss up to 40%

“This is a delicate period for cereals: the wheat has reached adult size, the ear has developed and we are now in the stage of grain enlargement,” explained Joël Limousin, in charge of emergencies at FNSEA. However, without water, the fertilizer the plant needs to produce high-quality grain will not be able to rise into the stem, “it will remain in the soil.” And grains will wither, with the risk of “crop losses that could be as high as 40% if the weather remains dry for several weeks,” he warns, worrying in particular about the great grain plains of Beauce and Burgundy.

The lack of rain, if it continues, will also affect spring crops such as sunflower, beets and corn, the ministry emphasizes. He also mentions the difficult feed situation as grass growth, which has so far been better than usual, is slowing down. Between September and April 2022, rainfall deficit is estimated at 19%. According to the Ministry of Ecological Transition, the groundwater recharge deficit is 20%, mainly in Grand Est, northern New Aquitaine and the entire southeast.

Restrictions in 15 departments

Faced with this situation, at the end of Monday’s meetings the ministries announced that the window opened in April to help farmers cope with climate change and initially allocated 20 million euros would be supplemented with “another 20 million”. Facing the risk of drought this summer, the government also announced at the end of April that water agencies could spend an extra 100 million euros to help the agricultural sector adapt or create reservoirs. The measure is contested by environmental associations and some peasant unions.

Currently, restrictions are already in place in 15 departments, and a total of 48 prefectural regulations have been issued. Restrictions range from encouraging water conservation (vigilance stage) to prohibiting watering gardens and fields at certain times (warning stage). They could also go as far as reducing water withdrawals for agricultural purposes by 50 percent, or completely banning water withdrawals for washing cars or watering green spaces (heightened concern).

These measures are being taken as the situation evolves at departmental level by prefects, whose role has been strengthened to speed up the completion of local consultative processes.