Chile Sees Smaller Wheat Harvest

WASHINGTON - May 1/06 - SNS -- Low prices and poor weather conditions have combined for force a reduction in the estimated size of this season's wheat harvest in Chile, reports the U.S. agricultural attache for the country.

"Consequently, wheat imports are expected to expand. For 2006-07, initial planting surveys show a slight increase in planting intentions and production. Therefore imports are forecast to be slightly less than in 2005-06, but considerable larger than in 2004-05," the agricultural attache said.

The 2005-06 harvest ended up around 1.492 million metric tons (MT), down from 1.852 million in 2004-05, Looking forward to the coming marketing year, production may not exceed 1.526 million MT.

An estimated 80% of wheat flour is sold directly and produced by 85 milling facilities nationwide. Industry sources indicate that the wheat produced in Chile is in general of a lower quality than that required by the bread and pasta industry. It is mainly low in protein and the quality varies a lot.

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