Mali has produced a record grain crop of 8.96 million tonnes for the 2016/17 season, an increase of 11 percent that will leave it with a surplus over 3.77 million tonnes, provisional agriculture ministry statistics showed on Wednesday.
Rice, maize and millet account for the bulk of the West African nation's grain production. Namory Diabate, head of the ministry's statistics unit, said the bumper crop was the result of good rainfall, growth in cultivated farmland, and increased use of tractors and government subsidised fertiliser. "This is never seen before output that will allow us to cover all our domestic consumption needs with a surplus," Diabate said.
The landlocked nation is West Africa's second-biggest rice producer behind Nigeria. Earlier this week it announced output of 2.81 million tonnes of paddy rice this season, up 20 percent from last year and above an initial crop forecast. The farming season in Mali runs from April to March and includes a production phase from May/June to September/October and a marketing phase from October/November to March 31.
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