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This year's summer grain harvest suffered significantly from drought, agricultural authorities have confirmed

Luxembourg's grain harvest began unusually early this year and concluded swiftly, reflecting the severe impact of prolonged dry conditions. The situation is particularly critical for fodder crops, with the third grass cut almost entirely lost. Many farms have already started dipping into winter feed reserves, raising concerns about supplies in the months ahead. Despite a 10 to 15% increase in prices, grain cultivation remains unprofitable for farmers this season.

There was, however, some positive news for winter rapeseed, spelt, and oats, where both yields and prices have proven satisfactory in contrast to the general trend. Maize results, on the other hand, are highly variable, ranging from good to very poor, depending on local rainfall. Fields intended for maize urgently require additional rain to avert further losses.

Minister of Agriculture Martine Hansen of the Christian Social People’s Party (CSV) emphasised the need for Luxembourg's farmers to adapt to the ongoing challenges of climate change. While she could not yet provide specific figures on the damage to grasslands caused by drought this year, the Ministry expects substantial losses across grains, maize, and pastures alike.

Also today

• High-profile LuxTrust phishing scams prompted victims to seek recourse in court as banks maintain they are not responsible.
• Parc Merveilleux in Bettembourg has announced the arrival of a red panda cub, born several weeks ago.
• Anne Calteux will soon leave her post as head of the European Commission Representation in Luxembourg to take up a new leadership position in the State Ministry,
• Meta agreed to pay a coalition of US states as much as $16.7 billion and to impose sweeping new limits on how teenagers use Facebook and Instagram.
• Prince Harry, his wife Meghan and their two children have today landed back in Britain.
• A flight attendant in France has succeeded in having her breast cancer recognised as an occupational disease.

On air

The day has centred over the death of Dolly Parton, who passed away yesterday aged 80. Everyone at RTL is devastated with the news and it was a day of celebration of her life.

Figure of the day

More than 300 people have fallen ill in Belgium, France, Luxembourg, and other European countries in a salmonella outbreak traced to contaminated eggs.

• Over three hundred people in Belgium have been infected with salmonella after consuming contaminated eggs, according to the country's health authorities. Officials warn that the true number is likely higher, as not all those affected have sought medical attention.
  
• The Belgian Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (Afsca) has issued a product recall and alerted several other European countries where the eggs were sold to, including France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Luxembourg, according to Belgian newspaper Le Soir.
  

• The recalled eggs came from free-range hens and can be identified by the codes 2-BE-1073-01, 2-BE-1073-02, 2-BE-1073-03, and 2-BE-1073-04. They were distributed by major supermarket chains in Belgium, such as Carrefour, Aldi, Delhaize, and Colruyt. Luxembourg authorities launched a recall earlier this month, confirming that the Colruyt group was the main distributor of the affected eggs in Luxembourg. The recalled products, sold under the Econom and Everyday brands, were available between 16 July and 10 August.

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