Miller Magazine Issue: 154 October 2022

NEWS tonnes in 2021, following Russia’s invasion, according to official estimates. Sanctions related to the war mean Russia has also struggled to export what is expected to be a record-large wheat crop. Shipments of wheat and other agricultural products from Ukraine have been a fraction of pre-war levels, said Kevin Hack, a global vice president for in- gredients supplier Univar Solutions UNVR.N. “The supply that’s coming from that area can be cut off at a moment’s notice,” he said. Farmers in China meanwhile, have grappled with dryness, threatening crops, while India has limited rice exports due to poor weather. Agricultural lender Rabo- bank said the next U.S. wheat crop is also at risk and will be planted in dust this autumn unless rains fall. That is “a recipe for another tough crop production year and strong support for prices,” Rabobank said. A ratio that factors in U.S. wheat inventories compared to usage and that reflects stockpile levels is expected to drop to a nine-year low in 2022/23, according to Re- uters calculations of government data. The same ratio is also predicted to hit a nine-year low for U.S. soybeans. “We end up, on the balance sheets, finding that it will be another year where global consumption exceeds global production,” said Dan Basse, president of consultancy AgResource. Importers are setting their sights on South America, where Brazilian farmers are expected to produce re- cord corn and soybean crops in 2023, according to analysts and the government. Farmers hope for better weather for soy plantings that are under way, after dry- ness spoiled part of last season’s harvest. In Argentina, though, the Rosario Grains Exchange predicts plantings that just began for the 2022/2023 corn crop will fall 7% from last season to 8 million hectares due to a famil- iar problem – drought. The Argentine government has also capped export of the crop, which will be planted in coming weeks, at an initial 10 million tonnes, compared to 36 million tonnes in the 2021/22 corn season. “If this were a race, farmers are starting in last position with trouble in their engine,” Cristian Russo, the exchange’s head agronomist, told Reuters. “The situation is ex- tremely complex, the most complex season we’ve had this century so far.” World Leading Digital Technology. Global Support Network World Leaders in Microwave Moisture Measurement Hydro-Probe XT Hoppers, chutes, belt conveyors Hydro-Mix XT Mixers, conveyors, Ducting System Hydro-Mix XT-EX Certified for use in ATEX, IECEx and NEC/CSA Hazardous Locations (Dust) Hydro-Mix HT Mixers, conveyors, Ducting System, High Temperature Oil Animal Feed Coffee Rice Grain enquiries@hydronix.com www.hydronix.com Contact us for more details