Drought and floods are to blame. – It is very bad. I have almost never experienced such a bad harvest, says Ivar Skramstad in Løten. He has been working with grain since 1992. Now he has to thresh, no matter how bad it looks, because new amounts of rainfall are on the way. Ivar Skramstad harvests his grain before more rain arrives, but does not know if he will be paid for it. Photo: Jenny Marie Sveen / news Rare situation It started with a real drought in May and June. The drought was replaced by very heavy rainfall. Then came the extreme weather “Hans”, which submerged large areas and destroyed crops. – This is a special season. It is very rare to have such a bad season as this, says leader of the Norwegian Farmers’ Association, Bjørn Gimming. At Norway’s largest grain laboratory in Hamar, they confirm the situation. There, they receive 3,000 samples from all over Norway every day, which are analysed, quality assessed and priced. Elisabeth Schøyen Seberg and Ingeborg Tønseth at the grain laboratory SGS Analytics in Hamar confirm that this year’s grain is very poor in many places. Photo: Jenny Marie Sveen / news – I don’t think we have seen such bad grain in any individual areas in the country, says laboratory manager at SGS Analytics, Ingeborg Tønseth. Large parts of Eastern Norway have been hit hard, particularly in Viken and Innlandet. The crops are also poor in the north, there due to an unusually severe drought. – It is very challenging when you grow food under the open sky, says Gimming. Being rejected at grain receptions Now the grain farmers are naturally very worried. Bjørn Gimming in the Farmers’ Union says they are waiting for a clarification on the so-called disaster scheme – a scheme which will help keep the wheels turning in a year with such a large production failure. Leader of the Norwegian Farmers’ Association, Bjørn Gimming, says the grain farmers must have answers from central authorities on how they should behave. Photo: Even Bjøringsøy Johnsen / news – There are some challenges with the interpretation of the regulations. Especially with regard to the grain that has been harvested but cannot be used for food and fodder. We have asked for clarification on that point from the ministry, says Gimming. Now there are many who do not know whether they should spend time and money on harvesting their grain at all. Too many are rejected at the grain receptions. – Absolutely. There is a lot of grain that has been rejected. Possibly there has been a zero settlement. If you have tipped it in here first and it is registered and assessed as not measuring up, you will not be paid, says Arvid Olav Bratlie at Fiskå Mølle in Løten. A lot of grain is so bad that it is rejected at the grain reception, which is at Fiskå Mølle in Løten. Photo: Jenny Marie Sveen / news Corn farmer Ivar Skramstad in Løten delivered today’s grain harvest on Friday. – I get delivered. But I don’t know how much we get paid for it. Urgent response Over the past week, Felleskjøpet and Norges Bondelag have worked together to get the central agricultural authorities to give instructions to the agricultural offices in the municipalities. – As the situation is now, the farmer takes all the risk associated with the cost of harvesting the grain, transporting it to reception, and then in an increasing number of cases experience getting zero in settlement for the delivery, says Bjørn Stabbeterp, executive director of agriculture at Felleskjøpet Agri in a press release. Many grain farmers do not know whether to harvest the grain or just plow it down. Photo: Jenny Marie Sveen / news He emphasizes that the situation at the moment is unsustainable. – We fear that the burden could, in the worst case, affect the life and health of the grain farmer, says Bjørn Stabbetorp. news has been in contact with the Directorate of Agriculture, where the specialist section replies that this has not been clarified yet. Felleskjøpet prepares crop forecasts every month, the last one is from August. The situation after the extreme weather “Hans” will be shown in the forecast for September, which comes next Monday.
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This year’s grain harvest will be small and of poor quality – first drought and then a lot of rainfall and floods – news Innlandet – Local news, TV and radio
