UZBEKISTAN (2 June)
Latest reports point to another record cereal harvest estimated at about 5.4 million tonnes, similar to last year’s harvest. This aggregate includes some 4.9 million tonnes of wheat, 150 000 tonnes of barley, 130 000 tonnes of maize and 103 000 tonnes of rice. Summer cereals such as rice, maize and spring wheat will depend on precipitation and irrigation water availability. Uzbekistan has made significant efforts to increase cereal production in order to meet domestic consumption requirements by increasing area under cereals at the expense of area under cotton. Cereal import requirement, mainly milling wheat and rice, is estimated at 268 000 tonnes during the ensuing marketing year.