site.btaAgriculture Minister Tahov: Over 6 Mln Tonnes Expected Wheat Harvest for 2024

More than 6 million tonnes of wheat are expected to be harvested in 2024, said Minister of Agriculture and Food Georgi Tahov on Tuesday. He launched the harvesting campaign within the framework of the initiative Bread of Peace in the village of Zlatitrap, Plovdiv Region, his Ministry said in a press release. 

Tahov specified that according to preliminary data, the estimated production will be between 6.1 - 6.3 million tonnes of wheat and over 800,000 tonnes of barley. The areas expected to be harvested this year with wheat are nearly 1.1 million hectares and those with barley, about 0.16 million hectares, added Agriculture Minister.

"The bread balance in our country will be secured. The favourable weather conditions at present give us confidence that the quality of the harvest will be at a high level," Tahov said. In his words, no hike in the price of bread is expected, based on the expected yields, which would be over 500 kg/ha. Regarding the wheat procurement prices, the Minister clarified that these are exchange prices. There is a spare capacity of about 80% in the grain storage warehouses in the country, so there will be no worries on harvesting and storage of the new crop, the Minister added.

In Tahov’s words, Bulgaria continues to be a significant factor in the international food grain market, exporting wheat to over 30 countries. Regarding the quotas for grain imports from Ukraine, he expressed hope that they would be maintained. "I hope we will get the answer to this question at the forthcoming Agriculture Council in Brussels," Tahov said.