WEST EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

France

Almost of the flax have been turned but until now only the winter flax, the headlands and a few fields have been gathered because of the lack of water.

There were 30 mm of water in the department of Somme a fortnight ago while there was no rain in the past few weeks in Eure, Seine-et-Marne or Calvados. In those regions there are a few fields on which the flax have not even been turned yet.

The straw yield should be lower than the 7 to 7.5 MT/ha previously announced.

Hazebrouck

Herlies

Belgium

There was 40 mm of water and then 30 mm in the past few weeks so the farmers could turn the flax and start gathering. To date 30 to 40% of the flax (mainly in the area of Liège) have already been gathered. The yield is estimated at 6-6.5 MT/hectare.

The Netherlands

70 to 100% of the flax have been gathered, according to the areas.

The straw yield is expected to be 6.5MT/ha at best.

LES AUTRES PAYS

The harvesting of cereals is about to be ended so the farmers may be tempted to gather flax immediately thereafter. If they do so the retting of straws might not be sufficient.

As for the seeds yield it is expected to be rather low.

BELARUS

30 to 50% of the flax have been gathered to date, with a correct state of retting, even if the first straws present some under-retted parts. There is no problem of over-retting so far.

The rest is remaining on the fields because it rains almost everyday in Belarus at the time being. As the temperatures are warm the straws should be retted very quickly.

As previously announced the height of flax is short in the West and South-West regions, whereas the plants reach 70 to 100 cm in the other parts of the countries.

EGYPT

5.000 to 6.000 hectares were sown with flax this year.

The straw tonnage is averagely 1.1 MT per hectare (which represents around 200 kilos of long fibres, 275 kg of raw materials, 125 kilos of seeds and 500 kg of shives)

There is no more 2015 crop in stock and the 2016 crop is expected to be not as good as the 2015 one. The Egyptian mills and factories should work until November.