FAO/GIEWS - Foodcrops & Shortages 04/01 - AZERBAIJAN (21 March)
The outlook for the 2001 cereal harvest is somewhat uncertain, as winter precipitation has ranged from 30-80 percent of normal over the country and is also below normal in the catchment areas of the neighbouring countries. Following last years summer drought, irrigation water reserves are low and the final outcome of this year’s harvest will depend crucially on rains in the coming months and snowmelt. Emergency works carried out this winter (deepening irrigation canals etc.) could help to maintain production levels of remunerative crops. Satellite imagery indicates more robust crop development, better than at the corresponding stage last year, so far.
The area sown to winter crops has increased further to 650 000 hectares, including 523 000 hectares sown to wheat and 122 000 hectares to winter barley. The first stage of land privatization has virtually been completed. The areas sown to winter cereals in the last two years have increased sharply as farmers switch to winter grains which mature in June, before the summer heat and peak water needs. The shift also reflects difficulties in marketing cash crops such as grapes and cotton.
The final official estimate of the 2000 grain harvest is 1.5 million tonnes, including 1.148 million tonnes of wheat, 209 000 tonnes of barley, 104 000 tonnes of maize. Rice production, which is being expanded, increased sharply to 22 000 tonnes and pulse output was 13 000 tonnes. The 2000 winter grain crop by and large escaped drought damage but the yield of spring-sown crops (potatoes, vegetables, cotton, fodder and fruit trees) was affected.
Following the well above average harvest, the cereal import requirement is expected to decline somewhat. However, grainfeed for animals is likely to rise, as fodder supplies are low and domestic farmers face import competition. The bulk of the cereal import requirements will be covered commercially, though vulnerable groups, including the internally displaced, still need targeted food assistance. WFP continues to support 485 000 beneficiaries through a 3year Protracted Relief and Recovery Operation which started in July 1999. Total food commodities committed for the life of the project amount to 47 880 tonnes of food aid.
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