Russian missiles strike grain ships
A Russian missile struck a grain vessel docked at the Port of Odesa on Oct. 7, killing one person and injuring five crew members, Reuters reported, citing Ukrainian officials. It was the second attack on a docked grain ship in Ukraine in as many days, as a vessel at the nearby Port of Pivdennyi carrying 6,000 tonnes...
Dryness stressing Ukraine, Russia crops
As if the Russia/Ukraine war was not enough to deal with, the region has been enduring a very dry summer. Crop stress in the region is peaking for the third time this growing season with very warm to hot temperatures and limited rain. Soil moisture has never been much more than marginally adequate since spring. Recently, the...
Grain market review: Coarse grains
The last several weeks have seen a mixed trend for maize (corn), although there was weakness in the United States on planting and yield expectations. The July World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report from the US Department of Agriculture added more bullish ideas on demand to the factors involved. In its Grain Market...
Ukraine to plant more oilseeds.
While Ukrainian farmers are expected to plant more oilseeds, with the exception of sunflowers, production volumes in 2024-25 could be dampened by lower yields. Soybean production area is estimated at 2.1 million hectares, an 18% increase, and rapeseed area is estimated at 1.5 million hectares, a 7% increase, according to a report from the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) of the US Department of Agriculture. Sunflower seeds production area is about the same at 5 million hectares.
Black Sea nations ally to clear mines
Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria have signed a memorandum of understanding to find and clear drifting sea mines in the Black Sea to facilitate safe transport of Ukrainian grain exports, Bloomberg reported. Mines drifting into specific areas of the Black Sea as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will be the focus of the initiative led by Turkey. Russia and Ukraine are both major producers and exporters of grain, and the war increasingly has threatened the safe passage of shipments.
Geopolitics’ impact on global grain market
When Russia signed an agreement in October to supply China with 70 million tonnes of grain, legumes and oilseeds over the next 12 years, a comment made several years ago by Stefan Vogel, Rabobank’s global sector strategist for grains and oilseeds, came to mind. Vogel, in a conversation with World Grain in the fall of 2021, said given the growing political tension between longtime agricultural trade partners China and the United States, it was possible that Russia, which is more…
Ukraine grain exports down sharply from last year
Ukraine’s grain exports are continuing to fall significantly behind the pace a year ago, with 13.4 million tonnes exported so far, compared to 18.3 million tonnes last year, according to data from the agriculture ministry. The exports include 5.9 million tonnes of wheat, 6.5 million tonnes of corn and 876,000 tonnes of barley. By this time last year, Ukraine had exported 6.9 million tonnes of wheat, 9.8 million tonnes of corn and 1.48 million tonnes of barley.
Ukraine ‘humanitarian corridor’ exports near 4 million tonnes
Ukraine has exported nearly 4 million tonnes via its “humanitarian corridor” since shipments started in August, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Nov. 14, Reuters reported.
Ukraine says nearly 300,000 tonnes of grain destroyed.
Russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s agricultural infrastructure and ships since July have destroyed nearly 300,000 tonnes of grain, Reuters reported, citing the Ukrainian government. Since Russia quit the Black Sea Grain Initiative in July, its military forces have hit six civilian ships and 150 port and grain facilities during 17 attacks, destroying crops headed for export, Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said in a statement.
UN, Russian officials discuss grain exports
Talks aimed at providing Ukraine and Russia “unimpeded access” to global grain and fertilizer markets were held between the United Nations and Russian officials Oct. 9 in Moscow, Reuters reported. UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said top UN trade official Rebeca Grynspan was in Moscow and UN aid chief Martin Griffiths joined the talks virtually.