Mon. May 30, 2022 at 5:34 p.m. • AFP
Russia, one of the world’s top grain producers, is redirecting sanctions-hindered exports to fill its own stocks, Russian Grain Union Chairman Arkady Zlochevsky said Monday.
Russia would only export 36 Mt of cereals in 2022/23, out of an expected potential of 40 Mt (©Pixabay) « NOur inventories are about 20% higher than last year. Instead of supplying the world market, we are replenishing our stocks,” said Zlochevsky, quoting the Rosstat statistical agency.
“We are not reducing or limiting in any way our deliveries” abroad, he indicated, specifying nevertheless that the export potential of wheat “is around 40 million tons, and we will export 36 million until the end of the season”.
“The information hysteria about the upcoming famine is only helping to drive up prices,” he added, assuring that “there is no no real threats to food security “. “When the hysteria is over…prices will collapse,” he predicted.
He indicated that the harvest in Russia this year could be closer to 120 million tons of cereals (including 80 million tonnes of wheat) than the 130 million forecast by the Ministry of Agriculture, while Vladimir Putin had hinted that the harvest could break a historic record in 2022.
Regarding Russian wheat, “we do not transit through European countries at all,” he said.
“We have very strong transit flows through Turkey and Iran, they (are not affected). And Iran came second this season in terms of purchases, behind Turkey. Even ahead of Egypt, which for many years was the leader in terms of buying Russian grain,” he said.
The conflict in Ukraine has undermined the global food balance, raising fears of a crisis that will particularly affect the poorest countries.
Ukraine, a major exporter of cereals, especially corn and wheat, is seeing its production blocked due to the fighting.
For its part, Russia, another cereal power, cannot sell its production and its fertilizers because of the western sanctions affecting the financial and logistics sectors. The two countries produce a third of the world’s wheat.
Russian wheat reserves are likely to increase further: on Monday, Kirill Stremoussov, an official of the Kherson region appointed by Moscow, indicated that wheat from this Ukrainian region conquered by the Kremlin would be sold to Russia and sent via Crimea.
To monitor changes in the prices of agricultural commodities, log on to Terre-net.fr’s agricultural markets
© All reproduction rights reserved – Contact Terre-net
–
