The final official harvest estimate based on mid-September information confirms a drop in this year’s cereal production largely because of reduced planting and heavy rains during the summer, which caused serious damage to some cereal crops before they could be gathered. The official estimate puts aggregate cereal production at some 6.7 million tonnes about 9 percent down from the previous year. Of the total, wheat would account for about 4 million tonnes, compared to almost 4.5 million tonnes last year. Prospects for the winter grain planting campaign are uncertain as many farmers are expected to be short of funds following the devastating summer floods.