Romania Wheat: Surplus for Exports, Yet Weighty Import
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Romania’s Wheat harvest is large enough to cover its domestic needs and ensure a surplus for exports. The main Wheat production area in Romania is the Danube plain in the south of the country. Other important Wheat-growing areas are Transylvania, the northern part of Moldova in north-eastern Romania, and the Banat region in the south-west. In 2020, Romania’s Wheat planted area was 2.1 million ha, having a yield of 2,987kg/ha and an output of 6.4 million tons.
Romania, ranked fourth in the EU after Wheat production in 2021. The cultivated area with Wheat in the fall of 2021 was 2.1 million ha, similar to the previous year. The Nation generated almost 10% of the total production of Wheat in the EU. It accounted for a quarter of the Union’s Wheat exports, in a volume of 6.3 million tons, in the period July 2021 – June 2022, according to the data from the European Commission.
Agriculture Minister Petre Daea said earlier in August that the harvest would be up to 18% smaller but still ensure an excess for export. High temperatures and prolonged drought hit crops hard this year, and preliminary ministry data on 24 August showed damage to 420,380 hectares out of about 7 million hectares of grain and oil-producing crops.
Due to the drought, Romania harvested 9 million tons of Wheat in 2022, down from a record 11.3 million tons in 2021, but still enough for domestic demand while providing a surplus for exports, according to the Agriculture Ministry. Domestic consumption regularly ranges from 2.5 million to 3 million tons.
Average Wheat production totaled 4.3 t/ha this year. The average price is 330 euros/ton, 33% higher than the last year. The value of Wheat production, at the current price on the pan-European EuroNext exchange of 330 euros/ton, would be 2.97 billion euro.
Romanian Wheat Trade Overview
Romania is among the largest grain sellers in the EU and is an active exporter to the Middle East, with Egypt the main buyer. As per AgFlow data, in volume, Egypt was the largest export market of Romanian Wheat with 2.2 million tons in 2021-2022, followed by Jordan (1.2 million tons), Algeria (0.9 million tons), Sudan (0.7 million tons), Israel (0.3 million tons), and Spain (0.3 million tons).
In value terms, Romania exported Wheat worth $1.17B In 2020, making it the 11th largest Wheat exporter in the world. In the same year, Wheat was the 9th most exported product in Romania. The main destination of Wheat exports from Romania is Jordan ($292M), Egypt ($210M), the Philippines ($122M), Israel ($84.6M), and Sudan ($69.3M).
In 2020, Romania imported Wheat worth $300M, becoming the 42nd largest importer of Wheat in the world. Wheat was the 65th most imported product in the same year in Romania. Romania imports Wheat primarily from: Hungary ($146M), Bulgaria ($76.1M), Serbia ($54.5M), Russia ($10.7M), and Slovakia ($6.16M).
Romania sold 858,692 tons of common Wheat between July 1 and August 21, 2022. Last year, in July and August, export amounted to 1,779,686 tons. Barley was sold in a total quantity of 437,216 tons, compared to 1,112,174 tons in July-August 2021. Also, the Nation sold 75,232 tons of corn, compared to 100,661 tons, in July – August 2021. In total, Romania exported a quantity of 1,373,170 tons of cereals, compared to 2,995,555 tons, in July – August 2021.
The country’s latest development is that the French and Romanian governments signed an agreement this month, allowing more grain exports from Ukraine to reach Europe and beyond. The cereals will be shipped to Europe and developing countries, especially in the Mediterranean, which need them for food and survival.
The preparation of this article included public information such as https://lantulalimentar.ro/
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