Archive for May, 2021

NEW DEHLI, INDIA — India’s wheat harvest is expected to be the second highest in the 2021-22 marketing year following four consecutive record harvests in the previous years, according to a Global Agricultural Information Network (GAIN) report from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Despite the USDA lowering its initial forecast, India is anticipated to record its second-highest wheat harvest of 105 million tonnes in the 2021-22 marketing year. The early reports of lower yields led the USDA to decrease its ...

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, US — Grain millers, merchandisers, brokers and traders continued to express disappointment with rail service in the western United States last week. The main issue was turnaround time for rail car placements back at origins.

One shipper said a Class 1 railroad was 45 days behind in car placements. A merchandiser for a major miller estimated placement at two to three weeks behind schedule. Ideas were that the railroad’s locomotive power, equipment and personnel primarily were engaged in ...

LONDON, ENGLAND – Global wheat flour trade is projected at 14.4 million tonnes (wheat equivalent) in the 2020-21 marketing year, identical from the year before, according to the International Grains Council (IGC).

As part of its Grain Market Report, released on April 30, the IGC said flour trade declined by 700,000 tonnes from its previous update in January.

The IGC noted that reduced import projections from Iraq (-200,000 tonnes), Yemen (-400,000), Afghanistan (-300,000), Syria (-100,000) and Angola (-100,000) were “only partly offset ...

ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, US — Building on momentum over the past several quarters, Bunge Ltd. delivered strong financial results in the first quarter of fiscal 2021, reaching a new high watermark for crush capacity utilization, and executing well in the marketplace through strong customer service, innovation and agility.

Bunge net income in the first quarter ended March 31 was $831 million, equal to $5.52 per share on the common stock, a sharp recovery from the first quarter of fiscal 2020, when ...

WASHINGTON, DC, US — Production of whole wheat flour in January-March 2021 was 4.827 million cwts, down 1.063 million cwts, or 18%, from 5.89 million cwts in the first quarter of 2020, according to data published May 3 by the National Agricultural Statistics Service of the US Department of Agriculture.

The 2021 figure was the smallest for a first quarter since quarterly data on whole wheat production has been gathered, beginning in 2014. Production in January-March was down 0.5% from 4.852 ...

UTRECHT, NETHERLANDS — Increased demand in Asia and Africa and rising exports from the Americas and Black Sea region are anticipated to buoy global grains and oilseeds trade growth. Several issues are expected to change these trade patterns while sustainability, policy and consumer trends are anticipated to jumpstart growth of organic crops and diversify crop production to include more pulses, according to a recent report by food and agriculture investor Rabobank.

The report — “The World Grains & Oilseeds Map 2021” ...

WASHINGTON, DC, US — Flour production in January-March 2021 totaled 103.634 million cwts, down 4.543 million cwts, or 4.2%, from a revised 108.177 million in the first quarter of 2020, according to data issued May 1 by the National Agricultural Statistics Service of the United States Department of Agriculture.

Flour production was down 3.353 million cwts, or 3.1%, from 106.987 million in October-December 2020.

The drop of 4.5 million cwts was the largest year-to-year drop in flour production in more than 18 ...

ROME, ITALY — A coalition of multilateral development banks and development partners including the Africa Development Bank and the UN International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) have pledged more than $17 billion to fight rising hunger and improve food security in Africa.

The announcement was made April 30 during “Feeding Africa: leadership to scale up successful innovations,” a high-level forum hosted by the Africa Development Bank and IFAD in partnership with the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) and the ...

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA — Having recently sold its flour mills to private firms, the Saudi Arabian government is now preparing to sell some of its grain silos as part of its plans to boost the private sector’s contribution to its economy, Bloomberg reported on May 3.

It said state-owned Saudi Grain Organization (SAGO) plans to begin selling grain storage facilities this year and will seek bids from foreign and local firms.

In the past year, SAGO sold its flour mills to a ...

CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA — Australia’s grain production is expected to reflect average output in the 2021-22 marketing year after a strong drought-recovery in the previous year, according to a Global Agricultural Information Network (GAIN) report from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Despite favorable conditions around the time of winter planting, the USDA anticipates Australia’s production to be down from the 2020-21 marketing year’s record-breaking wheat crop and barley crop that was the second largest on record.

Australia is projected to produce 27 ...