Combines continue to make progress on light land across the country, with both yields and quality proving mixed.

Harvest progress was about average in the Cambridgeshire area, and quality so far looked pleasing, said Rob Munro, marketing director at Fengrain.

“I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the barley, but one swallow doesn’t make a summer.

“Perhaps my expectations were so low, after such a dry spring, that it wouldn’t take much to exceed them.”

Yields were pleasantly surprising at GB Sewell & Partners’ Harcourt Farm, Godmanchester, Cambridgeshire, where John Sewell started combining Carat winter barley on 26 June.

That yielded about 5t/ha (2t/acre) at 11-14% moisture, with later cut Cassia coming in at 6.2-7.4t/ha (2.5-3t/acre).

“We’re not going to see any record yields, but at the moment harvest is looking quite pleasing, although straw yields are very indifferent.”

In Suffolk, harvest was earlier than normal, and winter barley yields were below average so far, said John Humphreys at co-op AtlasFram.

“At the moment winter barley yields are on the low side at 3-5t/ha (1.2-2t/acre), with low bushelweights, as you would expect. But the better crops are yet to be cut.

Samples were similarly uninspiring in Kent, said Francesca Lewis at Weald Granary. “The germination is alright, but I’m not sure about the crop itself. The grain is very small and it’s not a brilliant sample.

“If the rain doesn’t hold off now, I just wonder if we’re going to get more problems with fusarium and mycotoxins.”

But in Somerset, barley samples were also looking good, said John Collins, store manager at Cannington Grain, Bridgwater.

“The crops are looking pretty good; if it carries on like this I think it will be quite a nice harvest.”