SCOTLAND'S spring barley area remains at a multi-year low, virtually unchanged from 2016.

Last year, the area under the crucial distilling industry crop fell to a 10-year low, partly in response to large carryover supplies from previous years and a temporary decline in malting barley demand in some areas during the 2015/16 season. With little area recovery reported this year, final output levels will depend on yields.

AHDB's planting and variety survey estimated that spring barley covers around 239,000 hectares, although oats, winter barley and to a lesser extent oilseed rape, look to have benefited as growers cut back wheat plantings.

At 51,000ha, the Scottish winter barley estimate is up year-on-year and close to 2015 levels. Combined with a static spring barley area, the total barley area is estimated to be just 1% higher than 2016 at 290,000ha.

Overall, malting barley varieties with full approval from the Institute of Brewing and Distilling for harvest 2017 account for 57% of the total Scottish barley area. This is down from 2016 when varieties with full approval for that harvest accounted for 64%.

AHDB said that it was important to note that neither the 2016 nor 2017 figures included varieties with provisional malting approval, so a greater proportion of the Scottish area may be suitable for use by some maltsters. The data suggests there is increased interest in such varieties in Scotland.

Between 2014 and 2016, the Scottish wheat area was historically high and the cut back this year likely reflects rotational adjustments. In terms of varieties, this survey shows an increase in the area of Group 3 varieties to 14% of the 2017 area, from 8% in 2016, largely at the expense of soft Group 4 varieties.

Oilseed rape area is, at 33,000ha, up year on year but still below the 36,000ha recorded in 2015. Nonetheless, with the crop area continuing to decline in England, dependent on final yields, crops in Scotland are likely to account for a greater proportion of the UK total this year.

At 35,000ha the area of oats is the highest since 1989. Despite the increase in area, unless yields are also well above average, production may decline year on year. Record yields pushed Scottish oat production to a 39 year high (201,000 tonnes) in 2016.