Nigeria Becomes the Top Market for Polish Wheat
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According to the latest estimates of the Central Statistical Office of Poland, the total domestic Grain harvest (including corn) may reach a record level in 2022, close to 36 million tons (+4% y/y), said Marcin Wroński, Deputy Director General of KOWR (National Support Center for Agriculture). This year’s production of basic cereals with mixtures in Poland amounted to 27.1 million tons and was 0.4% higher than in the previous year. The Wheat harvest was estimated by the Central Statistical Office at a record level of nearly 13.5 million tons (+11%), and triticale – 5.6 million tons (+2%).
It is estimated that the harvest of other cereals will be smaller than in 2021. Nearly 2.4 million tons of rye (-5%) can be harvested, and 2.8 million tons of barley (-6%). Oat production may decrease by 7% to 1.5 million tons and cereal mixes by about 43% up to 1.3 million tons. Such high harvests allow Poland to maintain its position as the third producer of Grains in the European Union. The increase in this year’s production, despite the smaller cultivation area, was due to high yields. In Wroński’s opinion, the good harvest of cereals in recent years is due not only to favorable agro-meteorological conditions but also to other positive changes in Polish agriculture, including in the size and structure of farms.
The harvest size is also affected by progress in breeding and agro-technics, or the tendency to more and more common use high-quality certified seed and the introduction of more fertile and resistant varieties to cultivation – explained the expert. A high corn harvest was also expected in 2022. Due to an 18% increase in the sown area, up to 1.2 million hectares, it is estimated that in 2022, 8.7 million tons (+16%) may be harvested. A good harvest of cereals in Poland makes it possible to increase exports. Poland is a net exporter of cereal Grains. In July-August 2022, a record number of cereal Grains was exported from the country – 1.8 million tons (+84%).
It should be emphasized that the volume of exports in the corresponding periods of previous years generally did not exceed 1 million tons. In late 2022, mainly Wheat and corn were sold, the volume of which was almost three times higher than in the same period a year ago, noted Wroński. According to AgFlow data, Poland exported 0.4 million tons of Wheat in Jan-Mar 2023. Key markets were Nigeria (190,825 tons), South Africa (50,000 tons), Tanzania (40,741 tons), and the United States (32,700 tons).
Poland also imports Grain. In the above months, 3.5 times more (603,000 tons) of cereals were imported than in the corresponding period of 2021. It was mainly corn, whose imports amounted to nearly 466,000 tons, while in previous years, it did not exceed 100,000 tons.
Poland’s Ban on Grain Imports
Poland and Hungary have agreed to temporarily ban imports of Grain and dozens of other food products from Ukraine, which they say will protect struggling local farmers amid a glut of Ukrainian Grain on the market. Logistical problems in central Europe have caused Grain stores to pile up and prices to plummet, sparking protests from agricultural workers and even the resignation of Poland’s agricultural minister.
Poland’s ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS) party leader, Jarosław Kaczyński, said that the Polish countryside is facing a “moment of crisis” and that while Poland supports Ukraine, it was forced to act to protect its farmers. Ukrainian Ministry of agricultural policy has criticized the decision as “drastic and unilateral,” arguing that Ukrainian farmers were “facing the most difficult situation” given Russia’s invasion.
Other sources: AGROPOLSKA
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