Italy's cereal harvest could be 60% down - farm groups

(ANSA) - ROME, JUL 17 - The cereal harvest of Italy and other European countries could be down by as much as 60% this year, the Copa and Cogeca European agriculture groups said on Monday.
    "In the space of two months, forecasts for harvests which were initially positive have been turned on their head by poor weather conditions across Europe," a statement said.
    "For cereals the situation is extremely worrying with an expected production of 256 million tonnes, possibly the worst harvest since 2007 and 10% below the last 5-year average.
    "Many farmers will not be able to cover their production costs, this is why Copa and Cogeca are launching an urgent call to action to face this difficult situation in 2023 and its consequences for 2024...
    "Droughts have hit again across all the EU in May and June, with no precipitations at all in some regions.
    "We are now expecting a serious reduction of the production, especially for cereals, not only in Spain, Portugal, or Italy (up to -60% compared to 2022), but all over the EU (e.g., Romania -20%, Finland -30%, Poland - 14%, Lithuania -35% compared to the May forecast).
    "These low cereal production numbers will be accompanied by a serious issue of quality in many regions". (ANSA).