REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL on the implementation of the remote sensing applications and on the use of the financial resources made available to it under Council Regulation (EC) No 78/2008(second interim report)
Date: 2011-10-10
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: agricultural statistics, common agricultural policy, crop yield, meteorology, private-sector liquidity, remote sensing

EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 10.10.2011 
COM(2011) 639 final 

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND 
THE COUNCIL 

on the implementation of the remote sensing applications and on the use of the financial 
resources made available to it under Council Regulation (EC) No 78/2008 
(second interim report) 

{SEC(2011) 1170 final} 

 
 
 
 
  
 
REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND 
THE COUNCIL 

on the implementation of the remote sensing applications and on the use of the financial 
resources made available to it under Council Regulation (EC) No 78/2008 
(second interim report) 

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

Detailed  information  on  the  use  of  agricultural  land  and  the  conditions  of  arable 
crops is essential to the quality of yield and agricultural production forecasts. Such 
information is of particular use for market monitoring and the management of related 
market measures under the single Common Market Organisation. In this context, the 
European  Union  has  made  substantial  efforts  to  develop  and  improve  innovative 
technologies  and  models  specifically  related  to  remote-sensing  applications.  The 
experience  accumulated  has  shown  that  remote-sensing  provides  independent 
information  of  high  quality  which  cannot  be  obtained  from  traditional  agricultural 
statistics and forecasting systems.  

Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  78/2008  1  provides  the  legal  framework  for  these 
remote-sensing activities for the period 2008-2013. 

The  remote-sensing  applications  supported  under  this  framework  provide  useful 
information  to  the  European  Commission,  to  interested  Member  States,  to  research 
institutes and to other users, through the dissemination of different products. Since its 
creation,  the  system  has  been  continuously  improved.  Additionally  to  the  primary 
objective  of  producing  yield  and  harvest  forecasts,  the  system  also  provides  useful 
insights into other fields relevant to EU agriculture such as climate change. 

Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 78/2008 provides that the Commission shall submit 
a final report no later than 31 July 2013 on the implementation of the remote-sensing 
measures  and  on  the  use  of  the  financial  resources  made  available  to  it  under  the 
Regulation. This second interim report is drawn up in view of a continuation of these 
measures within the framework of the CAP beyond 31 December 2013. 

The report elaborates on a possible scenario for continuation of the existing MARS 
Crop  Yield  Forecasting  System  for  the  EU  and  of  an  extension  to  a  wider  global 
coverage with the objectives of further improving yield forecasts for the EU and of 
contributing to the international initiatives launched by G20 agricultural ministers. 

1 

Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  78/2008  of  21  January  2008  on  the  measures  to  be  undertaken  by  the 
Commission  in  2008-2013  making  use  of  the  remote-sensing  applications  developed  within  the 
framework  of  the  common  agricultural  policy,  Official  Journal  of  the  European  Union,  L  25  of 
30 January 2008, p. 1. 

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2. 

THE MARS CROP YIELD FORECASTING SYSTEM  

The  Mars  Crop  Yield  Forecasting  System  (MCYFS)  started  in  1988  as  a  10-year 
pilot  project  to  produce  crop  yield  and  harvest  forecasts.  The  activity,  which  was 
then  called  Monitoring  Agriculture  with  Remote  Sensing  (abbreviated  MARS), 
concentrated  on  the  assessment  of  crop  yields  and  production  volumes  of  various 
crops  within  the  EU,  on  the  basis  of  meteorological  analysis,  agro-meteorological 
simulated crop growth indicators, low-resolution satellite data and statistical analysis. 

From  1999  onwards  this  activity  was  carried  out  under  the  legal  basis  of  Decision 
1445/2000/EC2 for the period 1999-2003 and its extension for the period 2004-2007 
with  Decision  2066/2003/EC3.  Since  2008  and  until  2013,  the  activity  is 
implemented under Council Regulation (EC) No 78/2008. The MCYFS is operated 
within  the  AGRI4CAST  Action  in  the  Institute  for  Environment  and  Sustainability 
(IES) of the Joint Research Centre (JRC). 

The  MCYFS  is  a  complex,  integrated  analysis  tool  addressing  the  objectives  set  in 
the  Regulation,  more  specifically  the  monitoring  of  crop  conditions,  yields  and 
agricultural production.  

The system consists of several independent modules, which are integrated to monitor 
crop behaviour and to produce crop yield forecasts. From a technical point of view, 
the MCYFS includes: 1) the maintenance of a meteorological database (see Article 
1(2)(a)  of  the  Regulation);  2)  the  application  of  agro-meteorological  models  (see 
Article  1(2)(d));  3)  the  processing  of  low  resolution  satellite  data  (see  Article 
1(2)(a)); 4) statistical analyses and yield forecasts of the main crops at national level 
across the EU (see Article 1(2)(b)) as well as visualization tools. The MCYFS is run 
operationally  covering  the  whole  European  Continent,  the  Maghreb  countries  and 
Turkey.  The  crops  covered  by  the  simulation  models  are  soft  wheat,  durum  wheat, 
winter  and  spring  barley,  grain  maize,  rapeseed,  sunflower,  potato,  sugar  beet, 
pasture, rice, and other cereals. 

More detailed information concerning the system and its outputs can be found in the 
accompanying Commission Staff Working Document.  

(1) Meteorological database 

Meteorological  data  are  collected  from  meteorological  stations  throughout  Europe, 
then  quality  checked  and  further  processed,  and  finally  analysed.  As  such  this 
meteorological  database  can  be  used  to  trigger  risk  warnings  (e.g.  detection  of 
abnormal  weather  conditions  during  a  given  month).  Furthermore  weather  forecast 
data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts are analysed to 
prepare outlooks on weather conditions affecting agricultural land. 

2 

3 

Decision  1445/2000/EC  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  22  May  2000  on  the 
application  of  aerial-survey  and  remote-sensing  techniques  to  the  agricultural  statistics  for  1999  to 
2003, Official Journal of the European Communities L 163 of 4 July 2000, p. 1. 
Decision 2066/2003/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 November 2003 on the 
continued  application  of  areal-survey  and  remote-sensing  techniques  to  the  agricultural  statistics  for 
2004 to 2007 and amending Decision 1445/2000/EC, Official Journal of the European Union L 309 of 
26 November 2003, p. 9. 

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(2) Agro-meteorological models used for crop growth simulation 

Agro-meteorological  models  are  run  to  convert  the  meteorological  data  into 
estimations  on  crop  biomass  production.  The  tools  used  are  the  Crop  Growth 
Monitoring  System  (the  World  Food  Study  model  -  WOFOST  -  adapted  to  the 
European  scale),  the  pasture  model  LINGRA  and  the  rice  model  WARM  (Water 
Accounting Rice Model). 

Additional  information,  such  as  soil  parameters,  crop  calendars,  crop  practices  and 
crop  parameters,  is  utilised  to  produce  the  simulations.  At  this  level,  many  crop 
specific indicators/predictors (e.g. potential biomass) are produced and transferred to 
the  statistical  analysis  for  the  production  of  quantitative  yield  forecasts.  These 
elements also contribute to the assessment of crop conditions (Article 1(1)(b) of the 
Regulation).  Outputs  include  maps  indicating  extreme  temperature  at  a  given  crop 
stage,  simulations  of  biomass  and  grain  production,  estimations  of  actual  soil 
moisture reserve, the crop development stage in a given month, and the divergence 
from the long-term average at a given decade or period within the growing season for 
any agro-meteorological indicator. 

(3) Low resolution satellite data 

Remote-sensing applications feed into the system at all the levels and contribute to 
improve the agricultural forecasting models as well as to establish regionally-based 
models.  Information  from  meteorological  satellites  is  used  in  addition  to  the  data 
delivered  by  meteorological  stations  (e.g.  radiation  measured  by  satellites  at  the 
resolution  level  of  5  km).  The  remote-sensing  information  is  processed  to  produce 
“measured”  vegetation 
the  agro-
meteorological  indicators  and  used  for  the  statistical  analysis.  Low  to  medium 
resolution  satellite  sensors  are  utilised:  SPOT  Vegetation/NOAA-AVHRR  (about  1 
km resolution) and MODIS (about 300-500 m resolution)4. 

indicators,  which  can  be  compared  with 

(4) Statistical analysis 

The  indicators  obtained  from  the  meteorological  database,  the  agro-meteorological 
database and the remote sensing database are compared to the yield time series and 
analysed  with  statistical  methods  (e.g.  regression  or  scenario  analysis).  The  final 
results  are  quantitative  yield  forecasts  which,  together  with  the  analysis  of  the 
abovementioned outputs, are published in the MARS bulletins. Data available in the 
system cover a long period of time, starting in 1975. 

(5) Visualization tools and dissemination of outputs 

information, 
The  databases  (meteorological 
remote-sensing  information)  can  be  explored  by  users  via  information  tools. 
AGRI4CAST maintains a web portal where remote-sensing data can be screened and 
downloaded  and  a  portal  where  the  meteorological  and  agro-meteorological 
information can be viewed and downloaded in the form of electronic maps. It is also 

information,  agro-meteorological 

4 

The abbreviation SPOT stands for "Satellite Pour l'Observation de la Terre", NOAA stands for National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and AVHRR for Advanced very high Resolution Radiometer, 
MODIS stands for Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer. 

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possible  to  download  the  analysis  on  crop  conditions  and  yield  estimates.  All 
elements listed above are utilised for the preparation of bulletins and specific studies 
on  climatic  conditions  (see  Article  1(2)(c)).  They  provide  the  analyses  of  the  crop 
situation  in  different  regions  of  the  EU,  maps  of  weather  and  crop  indicators  and 
yield  expectations.  The  MARS  Bulletin  is  published  regularly  during  the  main 
growing season on paper and on the internet. 

3. 

IMPLEMENTATION  

3.1. 

Overall implementation  

For  the  continuation  of  the  operational  services  from  2008  until  2013  according  to 
Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  78/2008,  a  new  project,  called  MARSOP3,  has  been 
launched.  It  focuses  on  the  provision  of  operational  near-real  time  products  to  the 
JRC  for  the  monitoring  of  agricultural  production  and  yield  in  Europe.  In  August 
2007 a call for tender (Operational activities for MARS actions -MARSOP3- 2008-
2013,  Contract  Notice  N°  2007/S  154-191094)  was  published  in  the  supplement  of 
the Official Journal of the European Union. After the evaluation of the offer for Lot I 
(meteorological data) and Lot II (acquisition and processing of satellite data) and the 
favourable opinion of the Public Procurement Advisory Group, a contract was signed 
with  a  consortium  led  by  Alterra  BV.  On  the  basis  of  the  operational  products 
delivered  within  this  contract,  the  JRC  analyses  crop  conditions  and  prepares  yield 
and  production  estimates.  This  information  is  made  available  to  the  European 
Commission, Member States and EU citizens. 

3.2. 

Implementation with regard to Article 1 of Council Regulation (EC) No 78/2008 

Article  1  of  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  78/2008  sets  the  objectives  for  the 
implementation  of  remote-sensing  measures  (Article  1(1))  and  provides  details  on 
the measures to be undertaken (Article 1(2)). For ease of reference, the description of 
the implementation of the measures follows the structure of Article 1. 

3.2.1.  Aims of the implemented measures (Article 1(1)) 

Article 1(1)(a): management of agricultural markets 

The activity delivers independent, timely, scientific and traceable crop yield forecasts 
for all Member States and EU neighbouring countries for selected arable crops. This 
information is utilised by the Commission services for the following main purposes: 
1)  update  of  crop  supply  balance  sheets;  2)  assessment  of  climatic  conditions  and 
potential impacts of particular weather events in the Member States or regions (e.g. 
impact  of  a  late  frost  event);  3)  monitoring  of  crop  conditions  in  third  countries. 
AGRI4CAST  yield  forecasts  are  also  provided  to  the  Early  Estimate  System  of 
Eurostat.  Independence  and  reliability  of  the  outputs  prepared  by  AGRI4CAST  are 
viewed  as  important  assets  by  the  Commission  services.  The  statistical  analysis 
performed with the crop growth indicators is transparent, traceable and stored for all 
crop simulations and years. A set of statistical indicators (e.g. root mean square error 
for  different  confidence  intervals,  standard  deviation)  is  provided  for  each  of  the 
models. At the end of the forecasting campaign, an error analysis compares the crop 

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yield  forecasts  with  the  actual  observed  yields  to  quantify  the  forecast  error  and  to 
evaluate the forecasting performance.  

For information, the overall error, measured as the mean absolute percentage error of 
the  end-of-campaign  forecast  for  the  EU-27  across  all  months  and  for  all  cereals 
together, has been 1.6 % for 2007, -3.3 % for 2008, -1.2 % for 2009, and 1.2 % for 
2010,  respectively,  with  negative  values  indicating  an  underestimation,  positive 
values  an  overestimation  of  reported  yields  (reported  yields  of  2009  and  2010  are 
still preliminary). 

Article 1(1)(b): monitoring of crop conditions and estimates 

Besides  yield  forecasts,  crop  conditions  are  closely  monitored  throughout  the 
growing  season.  Meteorological  and  remote-sensing  information  is  analysed  and 
linked  to  relevant  crop  information  based  on  the  results  of  biophysical  modelling 
(e.g. impact of a heat wave, a dry spell, or a cold shock at certain crop development 
stages).  Furthermore,  outputs  of  the  crop  growth  model  are  directly  used  to  assess 
crop  conditions  (e.g.  simulated  leaf  area  index  or  simulated  biomass).  This 
monitoring covers the EU and applies to all the included crops. 

Article 1(1)(c): promotion of access to the estimates 

An open access to the various outputs is guaranteed by the websites maintained by 
the  JRC  and  by  the  MARSOP3  consortium.  The  MARSOP  website  offers  a  wide 
range of information (results from the applied remote-sensing measures, crop growth 
model outputs, links to the bulletins). Satellite data and images are organised into an 
image  server  where  the  data  can  be  viewed  and  downloaded.  It  is  also  possible  to 
request and download meteorological data from the MARSOP website. 

Article  1(1)(d):  ensuring  the  technological  follow-up  of  the  agro-meteorological 
system 

The  JRC  performs  a  constant  technical  follow  up  to  ensure  the  continuity  of  the 
system  and  to  guarantee  the  scientific  robustness  of  the  methodologies  applied. 
These  methodologies  include  the  interpolation  of  the  meteorological  data  onto  a 
raster, the derivation of remote sensing measures to describe the growing behaviour 
of crops or the statistical analysis performed to obtain the crop yield estimates. 

3.2.2.  Measures to be implemented (Article 1(2)) 

Article 1(2)(a): collection and purchase of meteorological and satellite data 

The  collection  and  purchase  of  meteorological  data  comprises  more  than  3500 
stations  delivering  information  on  weather  parameters,  which  are  fed  into  the 
MCYFS  on  a  daily  basis.  This  service  is  permanently  maintained.  Freely  available 
remote sensing data from low and medium resolution satellites (1 km to 300 m pixel 
resolution)  devoted  to  vegetation  monitoring  are  also  acquired,  stored,  further 
processed and analysed. 

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Article 1(2)(b): spatial data infrastructure and website 

Spatial data infrastructure comprises the technology, standards, human resources and 
related  activities  necessary  to  acquire,  process,  distribute,  use,  maintain  and  store 
spatial  data.  This  infrastructure  has  been  put  in  place  with  the  MCYFS,  involving 
teams at the JRC and under the MARSOP3 contract. It covers spatial data sets for the 
whole of Europe at different scales. The data are processed to account the needs of 
crop  condition  monitoring  and  forecasting  of  crop  production.  The  outputs  and 
information  resulting  from  the  different  sources  (e.g.  remote-sensing)  are  available 
via different websites and web portals. 

The infrastructure complies with the framework set by the Infrastructure for Spatial 
Information in the European Community (INSPIRE) Directive5: The spatial data are 
geo-referenced  according  to  the  INSPIRE  projection,  the  metadata  description 
follows the INSPIRE principles and will be further harmonized. 

Article 1(2)(c): specific studies on climatic conditions 

The  system  allows  the  preparation  of  specific  studies  on  the  climatic  conditions 
thanks to the large array of information available covering all relevant aspects. The 
following specific studies were prepared since Council Regulation (EC) No 78/2008 
entered into force: 

• 

• 

Analysis of the impact of the spring-summer drought and the abundant rain in 
August 2008 on winter cereals production in Latvia 

Analysis  of  the  impact  on  agriculture  of  extreme  weather  conditions  during 
several days of July and August 2008 in Slovenia  

•  Water  availability  for  rice  growing  in  Spain  in  2008  (analysis  of  cumulated 

rainfall) 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Analysis of the impact of 2009 winter frost events on winter cereals in Europe 

Analysis  of  the  weather  conditions  during  the  spring/summer  2010  and  their 
possible impact on agricultural production in Belgium 

Analysis  of  the  weather  conditions  during  the  autumn  and  winter  of  2009/10 
and their possible impact on agricultural production in Spain 

Analysis  of  the  weather  conditions  during  the  spring  and  summer  2010  and 
their possible impact on agricultural production in Hungary 

Analysis  of  the  autumn  and  winter  2009/10  weather  conditions  and  their 
possible impact on agricultural production in Italy 

5 

Directive 2007/2/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 March 2007 establishing an 
Infrastructure for Spatial Information in the European Community (INSPIRE), Official Journal of the 
European Union L 108 of 25 April 2007, p. 1. 

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• 

• 

• 

Analysis  of  the  weather  conditions  during  the  winter  and  spring  in  2010  and 
their possible effect on agricultural production in Lithuania 

Analysis  of  the  2010  rainfall  conditions  and  their  possible  impact  on 
agricultural production in Romania 

Analysis of the weather conditions during the 2009/2010 crop season and their 
possible impact on agriculture in Luxemburg 

Article 1(2)(d): updating of agro-meteorological and economic models 

Besides  the  operational  running  of  the  system,  models  and  related  databases  are 
updated  continuously.  The  database  contains  currently  three  terra  bytes  of 
information.  Since  the  Council  Regulation  entered  into  force,  major  improvements 
have taken place: The meteorological station network has been densified to ensure a 
better  monitoring  system;  the  resolution  of  the  former  50  km  x  50  km  grid  for  the 
spatial  analysis  has  been  improved  to  25  km  x  25  km;  new  crop  calibrations  have 
been performed; and a new database and software version has been released. 

4. 

DELIVERABLES AND OUTPUTS 

The European Commission, Member States and other interested stakeholders receive 
the  different  deliverables;  reports  and  bulletins  on  the  one  hand  and  information 
services and data on the other hand. All products are available electronically (Article 
2 of the Regulation) and partially on paper format. 

Reports and Bulletins 

The  crop  monitoring  bulletin  for  Europe  offers,  in  near  real  time  and  operational 
context, information and analyses on crop growth monitoring and yield forecasting. 
Countries  covered  are  those  of  the  EU  and  neighbouring  regions  (Maghreb,  Black 
Sea  area).  The  crops  covered  are  soft  wheat,  durum  wheat,  winter  barley,  spring 
barley,  grain  maize,  rapeseeds,  sunflower,  sugar  beet  and  potato.  A  full  analysis  is 
published  on  the  internet  six  times  per  year  and  supplemented  by  updated  yield 
estimates two or three times per year. Special bulletins are prepared for pastures and 
rice in the EU. Updates and reviews of agro-meteorological conditions are provided 
between the full analysis bulletins (10-12 times per year). All these publications are 
available in the internet or in paper format upon request. 

Information services and data 

A  large  variety  of  information  about  the  current  agricultural  production  season  in 
Europe  and  other  important  agricultural  areas  in  the  world  is  offered  on  the 
MARSOP  web  viewer  and  pages.  Available  products  include  graphs  and  maps  of 
weather indicators based on observations and numerical weather models, graphs and 
maps of crop indicators based on agro-meteorological models and graphs and maps 
of  vegetation  indices  and  cumulated  dry  matter  based  on  remote  sensing  images.

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5. 

BUDGET RESOURCE USE 

Table  1.  Use  of 
(payment credits, in €;  * = committed, ** = paid until moment of writing) 

financial  resources  under  Council  Regulation 

(EC)  No  78/2008 

in  2008,  2009,  2010,  and  2011  

2008  

2009 

2010 

2011 
(preliminary) 

Amount 

Short description 

Amount 

Short description 

Amount 

Short description 

Amount 

Short description 

LOT 1 / phase 1 

LOT 1 / phase 2 

LOT I / phase 3 

LOT 
renewal phase 3 

1/ 

first 

Additional 
meteorological 
stations for LOT 1 

LOT 2 / phase 1 

Lot 2 / phase 2 

Lot 2 / phase 3 

Lot 
2 
renewal phase 3 

/ 

first 

1 016 084 

Interim  and  final 
payment 

283 185 

Interim payment 

424 777 

Final payment 

288 707 

Interim payment 

433 061 

Final payment 

302 544* 

Interim payment 

67 800 

387 720 

Near 
time 
real 
stations (more than 
250) 

0 

Interim  and  final 
payment 

NRT  and  archive 
stations 

21 600** 

Archive stations 

137 989 

Interim payment 

206 984 

Final payment 

135 143 

Interim payment 

202 715 

Final payment 

141 620* 

Interim payment 

97 298 

MARS  Database 
information 
and 
technology 
(IT) 
support  

477 562 

MARS  DB  and 
information 
systems 
maintenance 
development  

and 

359 239 

MARS  DB  and 
information 
systems 
maintenance 
development  

and 

333 196* 

MARS  DB  and 
information 
systems 
maintenance 
development 

and 

MARS  DB  and 
information 
systems 
maintenance 
development 

and 

TOTAL 

97 298 

2 370 340 

1 414 851 

1 443 608* 

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Lot 1 covers the procurement of meteorological and weather forecast data (including the 
densifying  of  network  of  meteorological  stations).  It  covers  the  operational  run  and 
maintenance of the crop growth models operated within the MCYFS. Results in the form 
of database updates and maps are delivered to the database at the JRC daily or every ten 
days.  Appropriate  tools  for  exploitation  of  the  results  are  maintained  and  developed. 
Maintenance and improvement of MARSOP website is also part of this lot together with 
overall coordination and management. 

Lot  2  covers  the  processing  of  remote-sensing  data.  The  work  performed  covers  all  data 
enhancement steps between the acquisition of the raw imagery and the delivery of 10-daily 
composites (data ingestion, calibration, etc.). 

Mars  database  and  IT  support:  the  MCYFS  calls  for  the  provision  of  IT  services  to 
ensure  a  timely  production  of  bulletins.  Work  performed  covers  the  management  and 
maintenance of the database with all the remote sensing data, the meteorological data and 
the  agro-meteorological  indicators.  Development  and  maintenance  of  analysis  tools  and 
websites are part of this component. 

6. 

CONCLUSIVE REMARKS AND FUTURE OF THE ACTIVITY 

The  MARS  System  has  provided  effective  and  timely  information  and  objective  data  in 
support  to  the  decision  making  process  for  the  deployment  of  the  Common  Agricultural 
Policy  (CAP).  Beyond  the  primary  objective  of  producing  harvest  yield  and  production 
forecasts,  the  system  also  provides  useful  insights  into  other  fields  relevant  to  EU 
agriculture  such  as  climate  change  issues.  Moreover,  the  MARS  agro-meteorological 
system and remote-sensing applications have provided useful information not only to the 
European Commission but also to interested Member States, research institutes and other 
users, through the dissemination of products. 

The possible continuation of the MARS Crop Yield Forecasting System could include new 
activities to follow the needs of the CAP, which evolves and adapts to a changing global 
economic environment. In this context, independent and reliable information at world level 
is a basic requirement to ensure the correct and effective decision-making process within 
the EU. The new activities would include:  

(1)  A  MCYFS  enlarged  to  other  main  production  areas  of  the  world  and  to  additional 

relevant crops; 

(2)  A  modelling  tool  extended  to  EU  crops  other  than  those  currently  covered  (e.g.  to 

rye, oats, triticale); 

(3)  A more complete modelling of pasture systems able to provide quantitative estimates 

of biomass production. 

As  regard  point  1,  in  2011  DG  AGRI  launched  a  project  called  GLOBCAST  (GLOBal 
Crop Monitoring and ForeCASTing) through an Administrative Arrangement with the JRC 
that will end in 2013. The aim of the GLOBCAST project is to study the enlargement of 
the  MCYFS  to  other  areas  of  the  world  (Russia  and  CIS  countries,  Argentina,  Brazil, 
China, India, Australia, Canada and the USA) and to other crops of interest, like soybean 

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and sugar cane. In the first year the JRC will re-visit the existing data and will adapt the 
software and modelling tools to organise and implement the future pre-operational system 
in the years 2012 and 2013. According to the assessment of the GLOBCAST project, the 
resulting  activities  could  be  thereafter  included  in  the  MARS  programme  for  yield 
forecasts. 

The GLOBCAST project aims to provide a major contribution of the EU to the recent G-
20  initiative  on  food  security  and  price  volatility,  in  particular  to  the  Agriculture  Market 
Information  System  (AMIS),  included  in  the  "Action  Plan  on  Food  Price  Volatility  and 
Agriculture"6 adopted by the G-20 Agriculture Ministers. An extended MARS Crop Yield 
Forecasting System will contribute to AMIS via the Group on Earth Observation (GEO), 
which has as an objective to reinforce the capacity to produce and disseminate timely and 
accurate  crop  production  forecasts  on  a  national,  regional  and  global  scale.  The  EC  is 
committed to participate in those initiatives with data and information on markets, stocks 
and  productions.  Deliverables  of  the  existing  MCYFS  implemented  under  Council 
Regulation (EC) No 78/2008 and results of the GLOBCAST project are already and could 
continue to be contributions to the AMIS system.  

There are close links between the MARS Crop Yield Forecasting System and the Global 
Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) Programme activities. The possibilities 
for  enhancing  synergies  between  GMES  and  MARS  Crop  Yield  Forecasting  System 
activities are under discussion, in particular regarding the procurement and pre-processing 
of satellite data which could benefit from the GMES data and information. 

6 

http://agriculture.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/2011-06-23_-_Action_Plan_-_VFinale.pdf 

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