AHDB said limited rainfall from spring onwards contributed to a highly variable harvest across the UK
Wheat, spring barley and oat yields have finished sharply below five-year averages after prolonged dry conditions made harvest 2026 another difficult season for UK arable farmers.
Winter wheat averaged 6.9 tonnes per hectare, around 11% below its five-year average, while spring barley was down 17% at 4.8t/ha and oats were 14% lower at 4.6t/ha.
The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board’s (AHDB) final harvest report shows the season is now largely complete, with only very small areas of spring barley and oats still to be cut in northern Scotland and pulses remaining in Northern Ireland.
Harvest moved quickly across much of England and Wales, but yields were disappointing, particularly for wheat, spring barley and oats. Conditions improved as harvest moved further north, with later crops in Scotland and northern England helping to lift some national averages.
Even so, the levy organisation said limited rainfall from spring onwards had left several key crops notably below their longer-term benchmarks.
Winter wheat harvest is now complete, with the final survey average reaching 6.9t/ha. Reported yields ranged from 3.9t/ha to 11.5t/ha, highlighting the considerable variation between farms and regions.
Spring barley was one of the hardest-hit crops of the season, averaging 4.8t/ha despite some improvement from later-harvested crops in northern areas. Oats followed a similar pattern, finishing at 4.6t/ha, around 14% below the UK five-year average.
Winter barley proved more resilient at 6.9t/ha, broadly in line with its five-year average, while oilseed rape bucked the wider trend with an average yield of 4.0t/ha, around 19% above average.
Helen Plant, AHDB Lead Analyst for Cereals and Oilseeds, said: “This final report reinforces just how variable harvest 2026 has been.”
She said slightly stronger results from Scotland and northern England had improved the figures for some crops, but the overall picture remained difficult for many growers.
“Average yields only tell part of the story,” she said.
“We have seen huge differences between farms, with factors such as soil type, drilling date, previous cropping, local weather conditions and moisture availability all appearing to influence final performance.”
AHDB said grain quality had also varied significantly, creating further challenges for growers when storing and marketing crops over the coming months.
Anthony Hopkins, AHDB Director for Cereals and Oilseeds, said prolonged dry conditions had affected large numbers of farms, with the worst-hit areas often facing problems with both yield and quality.
The financial impact is becoming increasingly significant for growers who have faced more than one difficult season.
“This is the second, or in some cases third, successive challenging harvest. At a time of high input costs, arable farmers in the worst-affected areas are really feeling the financial pressure right now”.
AHDB has produced a Harvest Toolkit for Cereals and Oilseeds covering grain sampling, storage and contract considerations to help growers manage the aftermath of the season.