Poor European harvest tightens maize seed supply

With maize seed crop yields down by as much as 20% this last year, supplies of the most popular new varieties are selling out fast. According to KW's Chris Hoare, those most affected are the up and coming varieties which have proven successful over the last couple of years, such as Ballade, Agreement and Apostrof.

The advice to farmers planning their silage requirements is to make decisions sooner rather than later, and to stay in close contact with your seed supplier to ensure stocks of preferred varieties are still available.

"Most of the maize seed available in the UK is grown in continental Europe, where poor weather in some regions had a significant impact on yields," explains Mr Hoare. "Because the newer varieties are still in the early stages of multiplication, seed volumes are generally lower, so the combination of poor yields and rising demand has had a strong impact on availability.

"Although 2006 was an excellent year for growing maize, last year had some challenges, with maize silage quality more variable as a result. The focus so far has definitely been on those newer, high starch yielding varieties which performed well in 2007 despite the conditions, but it looks likely those placing late orders may be disappointed."