Defra has released its provisional estimates of cereals and oilseed rape production in England from harvest 2025. All crop volumes are down, save for wheat – where an increased planted area offset a slight fall in yield – and oilseed rape, where a 29% higher yield more than compensated for an 18% fall in plantings.
2025 England combinable crop production estimates (million tonnes)
| Crop | 2025 | 2024 | % diff | 10-year average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wheat | 10.61 | 10.11 | 5 | 12.85 |
| Total barley | 4.15 | 4.85 | -14 | 5.11 |
| Winter barley | 1.97 | 2.02 | -2 | 2.43 |
| Spring barley | 2.18 | 2.83 | -23 | 2.6 |
| Oats | 0.755 | 0.773 | -2 | 0.720 |
| Oilseed rape | 0.722 | 0.684 | 5 | 1.41 |
Source: Defra/AHDB
The 5% increase in 2025 English wheat production to 10.6 million tonnes is due to an 8.8% rise in the overall planted area to 1.5 million hectares, after 2024 autumn drillings were disrupted by very wet weather. However, the average 2025 yield fell by 3.6% to 7.0 t/ha from the prior year’s 7.2t/ha. Defra reports that wheat production rose across the North and the Midlands regions, but fell in the South West.
Total barley production in England is provisionally estimated at 4.2m tonnes, representing a 14% drop on the 2024 harvest with a 23% smaller spring barley volume and 2.2% less winter barley. An average year-on year increase in winter barley yields of 5.3% to 6.5 t/ha, was offset by the 8.1% decline in spring barley yields to 5.0 t/ha. Barley production fell across most regions, with a 22% fall in the Eastern region.
The 2025 English oat crop was down 2.3% to 755,000 tonnes, with an 11% drop in yield to 4.6 t/ha outweighing a 9.45 increase in the cropped area to 162,000ha. Regional yields varied significantly, with the highest in the North East and lowest in the South West.
England’s oilseed rape production rose by 5.5% in 2025 to 722,000 tonnes, despite an 18% reduction in the planted area to 204,000ha – a 40-year low. This was offset by a 29% increase in average yield. All regions saw higher oilseed yields, although the rate of increase varied across the country.
The full Defra estimates for England’s production can be found here. The full UK production figures are scheduled for release in December.