Canadian wheat plantings have reached a recent high.
Area planted to wheat in Canada surged to its highest level in more than two decades, one of several crops to see an uptick in planting in 2023, according to the June 2023 field crop survey from Statistics Canada released June 28. In addition to wheat, other crops with notable increases in plantings in 2023 included canola, barley, corn for grain and soybeans. Fewer acres were planted for oats, lentils and dry peas, Statistics Canada said.
Ukraine convinced Russia will exit grain deal.
Ukraine is nearly certain Russia will leave the Black Sea Grain Initiative as its renewal date approaches because Russia is developing an alternative for its ammonia exports, Reuters reported, citing a senior Ukrainian diplomat. The United Nations and Turkey brokered the Black Sea deal in separate agreements with Russia and Ukraine in July 2022 to alleviate a global food crisis worsened by Russia’s Feb. 24, 2022, invasion of Ukraine.
Bunge’s turnaround impressive
In a 2021 interview with Sosland Publishing Co. President and Milling & Baking News editor Josh Sosland, Bunge Chief Executive Officer Gregory Heckman hinted that a seismic transaction, like the company’s recent acquisition of major grain trader Viterra, could be on the horizon. The company, he said, was transitioning from a reorganizing and rebuilding phase to an era of expansion and growth.
Bunge, Viterra agree to $18 billion merger.
Bunge and Viterra announced on June 13 that they have agreed to a merger that will create one of the world’s largest agribusiness firms, moving it closer in size and scope to leading agribusiness giants Cargill and ADM. As part of the $18 billion deal, which was unanimously approved by both companies’ board of directors, Viterra shareholders will receive about 65.6 million shares of Bunge stock, carrying a value of about $6.2 billion, and approximately $2 billion in cash. Bunge…
Bunge, Viterra reportedly inching closer to deal.
Negotiations of a potential merger between agribusiness giants Bunge Ltd. and Viterra have reached a critical stage as the companies attempt to put the final touches on a deal that would combine two of the world’s largest agricultural traders, Reuters reported on June 8, citing sources familiar with the matter. The sources told Reuters that Bunge, whose market value is about $14 billion, would pay for most of the deal with stock as well as cash and debt financing from…
Wheat prices rise with Ukraine dam breach.
As millions of liters of water poured through a breached dam in southern Ukraine threatening regional villages and water supplies, worries about an escalation of the war between major grain exporters Russia and Ukraine sent Chicago wheat up 2% to a three-week high on Tuesday, Reuters reported. The Russian-controlled Nova Kakhovka dam on the Dnipro River provides water to a swathe of southern Ukraine’s agricultural land, including the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula, as well as cooling the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant.
China’s wheat quality is taking a hit from heavy rains ahead of harvest.
Heavy rain just ahead of harvest in China’s central Henan province is increasing wheat prices and raising concerns about quality, Reuters reported. The rain is causing some of the wheat to sprout or become affected by blight, according to videos on social media and a local grain dealer.
Ukraine says it has alternatives if Black Sea Grain Initiative not extended
Ukraine said it has alternate ways of transporting grain if the Black Sea agreement is not extended on May 18, Reuters reported. The agriculture ministry said not extending the agreement, as Russia has threatened, would not be an “apocalyptic scenario.”
Australian wheat output projected to decline
After three consecutive years of record-setting wheat crops in Australia, production in marketing year 2023-24 is forecast to dip 25% from the previous year to what would still be the fourth largest total over the last 10 years, according to a Global Agricultural Information Network report from the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) of the US Department of Agriculture. “Favorable conditions around the time of winter grain planting across most production areas of Australia bodes well for the establishment and early…
US soft red winter wheat forecast at 405 million bushels
A panel of flour millers and wheat merchandisers on April 25 forecast soft red winter wheat production in the United States in 2023 at 404.923 million bushels, up 68.297 million bushels, or 20%, from 336.626 million bushels in 2022. The soft red winter wheat crop as projected would be the largest dating back to the 2014 crop year, when 454.531 million bushels were harvested, and the second largest since a recent production peak of 568.481 million bushels in 2013.