Potato seed and ware exports from the UK could be interrupted in a Brexit no deal scenario and there are signs that seed potato growers are looking to export potatoes before the transition period ends on December 31.

With growers dropping oilseed rape from their rotations, a shortage of bean seed and uncertain returns from oats and niche crops in the absence of a contract, finding a suitable break crop is proving a challenge.

Availability of seed for popular winter wheat and barley varieties and winter beans, in particular, is likely to be tight this autumn due to reduced plantings and lower yields.

AHDB has released the first quality figures for the UK cereal harvest. The AHDB Cereal Quality Survey results examine quality in samples up to mid-August, just before the widespread rainfall later that month.

The final curve ball lies with South American weather – some more water is needed or there could be more oilseed fun and games in the New Year.

Sugar beet growers are disappointed by the price on offer for the crop in the 2021 contract - £20.30/adj tonne for a one-year contract and £21.18/adj tonne for a three-year contract.

With the wet weather continuing, large areas of cereals remain to be harvested, providing a headache for farmers as they watch quality fall away.

Potato growers should be aware that rate of foliage desiccation between different treatments does not correlate well with skin set.

Catchy weather is leading to increasing concern about wheat crop quality with fears of germination in the ear and falling Hagbergs if it continues.

The first harvest results for AHDB Recommended List (RL) winter wheat trials have been published. Results include three treated sites, two from Lincolnshire and one from Hampshire.