Tables 2.1 and 2.2 present an overview of the agroclimatic(table 2.1) and agronomic (table 2.2) indicators for each of seven MPZs,comparing the indicators to the five- and thirteen-year averages. Based on thetable data and the detailed analyses for each MPZ, their overall situation canbe described as very promising in Southern and Southeast Asia and in SouthAmerica, positive with some reservations in Europe (western as well as east toRussia) and in West Africa, and mixed in Australia and particularly in NorthAmerica.

Southern and continental Southeast Asia and South Americaunderwent rather similar conditions in relative terms: Slightly above averagerainfall and close to average temperature resulting in increased biomasspotential (14 and 10% respectively) but a close to average fraction of cultivatedland. The most positive indicator in both areas is VCI (close to 0.85),indicating a season that is comparable to good previous years.

Table 2.1. January to April 2014 agroclimaticindicators by Major Production Zone, current value and departure from 5YA and13YA

Table 2.2. January to April 2014 agronomicindicators by Major Production Zone, current season values and departure from5YA

In Europe (from the Atlantic ocean to the Ural mountains)rainfall was significantly below average (-20% to -17%) and temperature higherthan the average of the recent years (+2.0°C and +1.1°C), resulting in biomassexpectations close to average. In the west, the increase in cropland wasinsignificant (+1%), while in the east a very significant increase was observed(+19%). Combined with the rather positive VCI values of 0.80 in the east and asmuch as 0.9 in the west, the cropland fraction and the "zero biomass"increase nevertheless indicate at least average crop condition: rainfall israrely limiting in those areas and increased sunshine (+4% in the east)directly boosts crop yields.

The interpretation of the West African data is not sostraightforward. The area includes agro-ecologically very diverse areas,covering both rainforest, usually well watered in the south, as well as muchdryer, semi-arid ecosystems and farming systems in the north. It appears thatabove average rainfall did not occur in the north, where it would havecontributed to a very early start of the growing season. Altogether, thecombination of a slight biomass increase with moderate VCI point at averageconditions in the south where planting of maize and rainfed rice has started inMarch.

In southern Australia rainfall was below average (-11%) andaccompanied by above-average temperature, resulting in a decrease of thebiomass accumulation potential but nevertheless a slight increase in croppedarable land. VCI is low, which indicates conditions close to a mediocre season.

The North American MPZ suffered from both reducedprecipitation and consistently low temperature in several waves, resulting in aglobal average departure of -2.3°C, which is considerable when the large areaand the long time period (four months) are taken into consideration. Thenegative impact is visible in all indicators, starting with reduced biomassaccumulation (-12%), reduced cropped land area (-8%), and the lowest VCI valueof all MPZs, pointing at a just average performance compared with the recent thirteenyears.