Summer crops severely affected in the south and east

Hot and dry conditions in south-eastern Europe negatively affected the yield potential of rainfed summer crops — Sunflower field in Greece - Central Makedonia in mid-August 2025, by Artemis Panagos

In short

Hot and dry weather across southern and eastern Europe severely affected summer crops such as maize, sunflowers and soybean. Persistent drought conditions in Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, southern Ukraine and Türkiye caused irreversible yield damage in rainfed agriculture. Heat and rainfall deficit reduced yield expectations also in Hungary and eastern Croatia.

In contrast, conditions were more favourable in western and northern Europe. In Spain, Portugal, Italy, northern France, the Benelux countries, Germany, and Poland, adequate rainfall and moderate temperatures – despite some heatwaves – supported summer crop development, with yield expectations around or above the five-year average. Grasslands in northern Europe also performed well.

The winter crop season generally ended, with an outlook broadly confirming our previous overall positive forecasts. Only in the Baltic countries, excessive rainfall has been hampering the harvest.

Looking ahead, cooler and wetter conditions are forecast for central and northern Europe, while southern and south-eastern regions are expected to continue facing hot and dry conditions.

Western Europe – summer crops are resisting heat stress

In the northern Iberian peninsula, high temperatures at the beginning of August were locally unfavourable for summer crops during their reproductive stages.
In France, low soil moisture levels persist in south-western regions, where non-irrigated summer crops may experience yield reductions.
In Germany, favourable weather has alleviated pest pressure, and the negative impact on summer crops remains limited to sugar beet and potatoes in regions already highlighted in the July issue of this bulletin.
In Italy, the heatwave during the second week of August only marginally affected summer crops, which were already well developed by that time. The impact highlighted in central regions corresponds to the heatwave effects reported in the July issue of the bulletin.

South-eastern Europe – hot and dry weather threatens summer crop yields

In central and south-eastern Hungary and eastern Croatia,high temperatures and reduced precipitation have put summer crops under stress, lowering national yield expectations.
In large areas of Romania and most of Bulgaria, hot and dry weather has persisted, preventing summer crops from recovering from the already mediocre conditions experienced in July.
In Greece, prolonged high temperatures severely reduced soil moisture to levels for which irrigation could not compensate. As a consequence, yield expectations have decreased in eastern and northern regions.
In Türkiye, a long-lasting water deficit and very high temperatures were particularly unfavourable for summer crops, which suffered from limited irrigation and heat stress.
In Ukraine, summer crops in southern and eastern regions continue to suffer from drought.

Winter/spring crop season ended

The winter/spring crop season came to an end with no new impacts recorded. For the latest assessment of winter crops, please refer to the July issue of the bulletin

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