DRY weather leading to grain price rises is proving to be a mixed blessing for farmers and bad news for shoppers.

In the past few weeks wheat and barley prices have risen dramatically, with wheat soaring by about 50 per cent since mid-June and the price of barley more than doubling in the same period.

Wheat is usually priced at around £95-100 per tonne, but the cost has risen to £150, while barley has gone from around £75 to £175 per tonne.

But a dry spring and summer has meant crop yields are down significantly, undoing much of the benefit of the increased prices for farmers.

Laurence Matthews, co-owner of Manor Farm in Wotton and the South East's representative on the National Farmers Union's Combinable Crops Board, said: "Particularly around here there was no rain until last week so our yields and crops have been quite badly affected.

"The rise in prices should hopefully make up for the lack of yield but it won't fully compensate us for the loss of production."

The price hike is largely due to severe droughts and wildfires in Russia, one of the world grain market's most important exporters.

Kam Patel, owner of Westcott Bakery in Guildford Road, Westcott, said: "It will definitely have a knock-on effect on consumers."

Mr Patel said rising flour prices would inevitably be passed on to customers by bakeries who are also struggling with increases in other ingredients and fuel.

He said: "When my supplier tells me that the price of flour is going up I will have to push up my prices."

Mike Giffin, farm manager at Flanchard Farm near Leigh and a member of the British Cereal Exports Advisory Committee, said: "There is huge volatility in the market place, which is the problem.

"I was at a grain market earlier this year and they said there that the price wasn't going to shift much. It shows how tight the balance between supply and demand is globally."

Many farmers may miss out on the bumper prices, as it is common for them to sell their grain at fixed prices up to a year in advance.

Both Mr Matthews and Mr Giffin grow arable crops as well as farming livestock, and the pair said the price increases are likely to have serious ramifications for dairy and beef farmers as livestock feed prices are linked to the price of wheat.

Mr Matthews said: "At this time of year farms don't have to feed their cattle too much because normally there is plenty of grass for them to eat.

"But this year it has been so dry that no grass has grown, so they're having to give them dried feed."

But both are keen to emphasise that for most of the farming community the increased price is welcome.

Mr Giffin said: "The increases are good for us farmers, it's just that it won't make a huge difference because we've seen production fall."