The International Grains Council has, for a second time, raised its forecast for this year's wheat harvest, saying that European and Black Sea crops avoided significant damage from a harsh winter.

The forecasts came in a report in which the council said that world's 2009-10 corn crop was, after all, a record, adding that it expected higher plantings this year.

For wheat, the IGC raised its output estimate by 6m tonnes to 659m tonnes, putting the world on course for a third successive year of bumper production.

Global output has averaged 638m tonnes over the last five years.

The revision reflected a higher estimate of wheat plantings, at 222m hectares, taking them within 1% of last year's.

'Adequate snow cover'

However, the council also noted the impact of favourable weather, with rain blessing Chinese and North African crops, and snow blankets protecting autumn-sown fields in the European Union and the CIS region of former Soviet states.

The council's raised wheat area forecast belied weak prices expected to dissuade North America farmers to play catch up with spring wheat plantings after a slump in US winter wheat sowings to their lowest since 1913.

"Some farmers in Canada's spring wheat areas may switch to more profitable crops such as oilseeds and pulses," the briefing said.

"In the US… spring wheat sowings are unlikely to increase because of low profitability."

Nonetheless, a forecast of a 54m-tonne American crop was 1.1m tonnes ahead of a US Department of Agriculture estimate last week.

Corn prospects 

The council also added 6m tonnes to its forecast for global corn production in 2009-10, taking it to 797m tonnes, beating the record set two seasons ago.

And sowings are on course to rise by 1.6% this year, reflecting larger plantings in the CIS, South America and the US.

Barley sowings, however, are expected to fall in both Europe and the CIS, the report added.