AUSTRALIA
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
Winter Wheat Crop Forecast Cut: The government has slashed its winter wheat crop forecast 12% to a 20-year low of 8.3 million metric tons because of the prolonged drought. That was down from a September forecast of 9.4 million tons. Australia was the world’s fourth-largest wheat producer last year, with a harvest of 17.9 million tons. The drought, which isn’t forecast to break until next March, is so bad that Australia has begun importing grains to feed livestock and is preparing to import wheat to feed people.
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