FAO/GIEWS - Foodcrops & Shortages 09/98 - YUGOSLAVIA, FED. REP. OF (SERBIA

YUGOSLAVIA, FED. REP. OF (SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO) (3 September)

The 1998 wheat crop, now harvested, is estimated at 3.27 million tonnes, from just over 800 000 hectares, which is above average and 12 percent higher than the 1997 outturn. The maize area remained unchanged from the 1997 level. However, yields are expected to fall by as much as 20 percent as a result of high temperatures and low rainfall from mid July to mid August. Hailstorms caused extensive crop damage on an estimated 9 000 hectares. Maize harvesting is underway. Preliminary indications are of a maize crop in the region of 6 million tonnes. Scattered showers in late August and early September provided useful moisture for the planting of winter wheat.

Maize exports for the 1998/99 marketing year (July/June) are forecast at around 300 000 tonnes. The Government plans to purchase 600,000 tonnes of wheat, but the official prices are viewed as insufficient to meet production costs. Short supplies have been reported for basic foodstuffs in state shops, where consumer subsidies are maintained, but the private trade has adequate stocks.

Intense fighting continues in Kosovo, where some 270 000 people have been displaced from their homes inside Kosovo. A further 130 000 people have taken refuge in neighbouring regions and states. With the onset of winter approaching, agencies are appealing for immediate funds of US$43 million.

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