German grain harvest forecast to fall 7% to 41.9m tonnes after drought
The German Farmers' Association forecasts a 2026 grain harvest of 41.9 million tonnes, roughly 7% below last year's level, with drought driving losses of up to 20% in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.
The Deutscher Bauernverband (German Farmers' Association) expects Germany’s 2026 grain harvest to reach 41.9 million tonnes, roughly 7% below the previous year’s level, after a severe summer drought and heatwave damaged crops across the south.
Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg face grain losses of up to 20% in 2026, the association says. The forecast is provisional and depends on conditions in the coming weeks.
Liquidity squeeze
Joachim Rukwied, president of the Deutscher Bauernverband, warns that many farms face a liquidity crisis. He told the Handelsblatt Today podcast on 19 August that business failures are occurring quietly as incomes shrink.
Aid demands
Rukwied has called on the government to triple EU fertilizer subsidies from €60 million to €180 million, to advance 80% of EU direct payments to October, and to cut agricultural diesel taxes. The demands arrive as Brussels and Berlin finalise the 2026 budget cycle and national aid packages.
