Sunflowerseed production in the European Union (EU) is 2024 is expected to be at its lowest level for nine years, according to EU Commission estimates reported by Germany’s Union for the Promotion of Oil and Plant Proteins (UFOP).
EC estimates forecast sunflowerseed production to total just over 8.1M tonnes in 2024, which would represent a 17% drop from the previous year and the smallest crop since 2015, the 6 November report said.
Despite a 4% increase in sunflower planted area to 4.9M ha, the expansion would not offset a 20% yield drop in yields to 16.7 decitonnes/ha, the 6 November report said.
The lowest yields for 12 years were due to unfavourable weather conditions throughout the growing season, according to the report.
With a record sunflower planted area of 1.3M ha, Romania remained the most important production region in the EU-27
However, the country’s output of 1.2M tonnes was well below the previous year’s 2M tonnes.
According to research by Agrarmarkt Informations-Gesellschaft, production in Germany declined for the second consecutive year in 2024.
Despite this, the sunflower planted area remained well above the level recorded prior to Russia’s attack on Ukraine, as many farmers in Germany had expanded their sunflower areas significantly in 2022 following the start of the conflict.
Heavy rainfall had also led to concerns over the yield potential in France, where EU Commission estimates projected yields just under 1.8M tonnes, which would be a 14% drop from 2023.
