BEIJING: China’s wheat output harvested in the early summer of 2025 dipped 0.1% from a year earlier, official data showed on Thursday, as severe drought hit key growing regions like Henan province, the country’s granary.
The world’s top wheat producer recorded a total output of 138.16 million metric tons, slightly down from 138.22 million tons in the previous year’s harvest.
Production of winter wheat, sown in the autumn of last year and harvested in early summer, fell by 45,000 tons to 135.45 million tons, accounting for 98% of the total wheat output.
Total wheat planting acreage dropped 0.1% year-on-year to 23.07 million hectares, according to the National Bureau of Statistics data. “This year, severe droughts have occurred in major grain-producing areas such as Henan and Shaanxi, adversely affecting summer grain production,” the NBS said in a separate statement.
These two provinces, which account for over a quarter of China’s total wheat output, were hit hard by hot, dry weather in May. In late May, some farmers in Shaanxi and Henan told Reuters their production was slashed by as much as half. The NBS said timely irrigation efforts and fewer other natural disasters helped to keep overall output stable.
China’s total grain production for the summer also slipped 0.1% from a year ago to 149.74 million metric tons, while grain planting acreage for the year dropped 0.1% at 26.58 million hectares, the NBS said.
China’s total grain output in the summer harvest includes other cereals such as barley, oats and buckwheat, as well legumes and tuber crops.
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