Archive for July, 2021

ROME, ITALY — World hunger dramatically worsened in 2020, mostly related to fallout of COVID-19, the United Nations said.

One-tenth of the global population – up to 811 million people – were undernourished last year, according to a multi-agency report, The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World.

“Unfortunately, the pandemic continues to expose weaknesses in our food systems, which threaten the lives and livelihoods of people around the world,” the heads of the five UN agencies write in this ...

WASHINGTON, DC, US — Agriculture, together with the labor, health care and technology sectors, will be subject to heightened enforcement challenging industry consolidation and anti-competitive behavior, according to a July 9 announcement from the White House.

The announcement was issued ahead of US President Joe Biden’s signing of an executive order “to promote competition,” in a bid to lower prices for families, increase wages for workers and promote innovation and increased economic growth.

In more than 75% of US industries, “a smaller ...

ROME, ITALY — For the first time in 12 months global commodity prices slipped in June, according to the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO).

The FAO’s Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in the international prices of commonly traded food commodities and was released on July 8, averaged 124.6 points in June 2021, down 2.5% from May, but still 33.9% higher than its level in the same period last year.

The FAO Cereal Price Index decreased 2.6% from May but remained ...

ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN — An increase in planted area and government support for an increase in minimum support price is expected to push Pakistan’s wheat production to a new record, according to a Global Agricultural Information Network (GAIN) report from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Wheat production is expected to be 27 million tonnes in the 2021-22 marketing year, an 8% increase over the 25 million tonnes produced in the previous year.

The Pakistani government has approved the import of up to ...

LONDON, ENGLAND — Wheat planted area in Britain is forecast to expand by 26% in 2021 to 1.74 million hectares, according to a survey issued by the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) on July 8.

AHDB noted that sowing conditions for wheat, which is planted in the fall, are more favorable than a year ago, when many farmers shifted to planting barley in the spring.

The survey noted that wheat planted area for 2021 is in line with the five-year average.

With ...

WASHINGTON, DC, US — A research project just underway aims to prove properly managed wheat of specific varieties can simultaneously be high yielding, high quality and be highly profitable for the grower.

The project will unfold over the next three years under the auspices of the Wheat Action Plan, created collaboratively by the National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG), the National Wheat Foundation and key partners from several segments of the wheat industry. The group conceived the project during a January ...

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, US — Grain inspections in the third week of June were the lowest weekly volume since January 2019, the US Department of Agriculture said in its latest Grain Transportation Update.

In the week ended June 24, total inspections of corn, wheat, and soybeans for export from all major US export regions totaled 1.4 million tonnes, down 45% from the previous week, down 33% from the same week in 2020, and down 35% from the recent three-year average for ...

LONDON, ENGLAND — The International Grains Council (IGC) announced on July 5 that Taras Kachka of Ukraine has been named chairperson of the organization for 2021-22.

Kachka, who is deputy minister for economic development, trade and agriculture for Ukraine, said the IGC’s common goal “is to develop further engagement with all the major producers and consumers of grains.”

“The commodities within the scope of the IGC are fundamental for global food security and food systems,” he said. “We will try to ensure ...

RABAT, MOROCCO — Morocco has increased its 2021-22 wheat and barley production outlook by 206% over the previous marketing year due to favorable weather conditions, according to a July 1 Global Agricultural Information Network report from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

The Morocco Ministry of Agriculture is forecasting total wheat and barley output at 9.8 million tonnes, which is about 26% above the country’s 10-year production average.

The estimate includes 4.8 million tonnes of common wheat, 2.4 million of durum wheat, ...

ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA, US — The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) has produced a new firefighting manual for grain facilities.

The NGFA Firefighting Manual: A Guide for Operators of Grain Handling Facilities and Fire Department ...