The persistent drought in Saxony-Anhalt is causing poor harvests for animal feed. Buying is often too expensive. The farmers are worried.
Magdeburg (dpa/sa) – Farmers in Saxony-Anhalt fear a lack of feed for their animals. The harvest expectations for cutting on grassland will be missed this year, as the Farmers’ Association of Saxony-Anhalt told the German Press Agency. In an average year, twice to three times the harvest could be realized. The first two cuts this year were therefore rather bad. In many places there will not be a third cut if the drought persists because the growth is too small.
Maize is also a concern for companies. For many farmers, the harvest starts earlier this year because emergency ripening has set in. According to the association, the corn has dried up so much in many places that it has to be harvested before the quality of the crop continues to deteriorate. “The silo maize, which is urgently needed by livestock farmers, will bring only 70 percent of the desired yield for the majority of farms, in some cases only 50 percent or even less,” predicted a spokesman.
“The drought and the excessively rising costs are causing our animal owners more and more distress,” said association president Olaf Feuerborn. “In combination with the requirements from Brussels and Berlin, the companies are in a corset that does not allow any development. We want to continue having animal husbandry in Germany, for which politicians must provide comprehensive solutions,” he demanded.
Some farms have already gotten rid of some of their animals in order to have enough feed, the association continues. Buying feed is not an option for many farms. “Roughage is hard to come by, the cost of concentrated feed has risen sharply, both due to the poor harvest across Europe and the market distortions resulting from the war in Ukraine,” said the association spokesman.
