Ukrainian Grain Crop Totals 41.5 Million Tons

Ukraine has harvested 41.5 million metric tons of grain in the current season, Interfax-Ukraine reported, citing preliminary data from the Agriculture Policy Ministry.

The average grain yield was 2.85 tons a hectare (2.47 acres), down from 3.12 tons a hectare a year earlier, Interfax said.

Ukraine: agrarians to lose 1 mln tonnes of maize, due to the export limitations

Due to maize export limitations and flooded elevators, Ukrainian agrarians had to stop maize harvesting campaign. The grain losses totaled 1 mln tonnes. The estimation was introduced by Leonid Kozachenko, the President of the Ukrainian Agrarian Confederation.

During the recent three month (since imposition of the grain export quotas), damaged maize volumes reached the level of 1 mln tonnes. The volumes are damaged, agrarians utilize the maize, due to the impossibility to export it.

According to the announcement, due to rather small quotas volumes and also non-operative distribution, the market formed the shortage of capacities for grain storage.

Maize, which harvesting campaign starts at the latest terms, is in the most difficult situation, because at the moment of the harvesting campaign beginning, the elevators were completely overstocked. The situation was complicated by the fact that in the current year maize harvested volumes totaled the highest level for all the years of Ukraine independence and total over 12 mln tonnes.

Maize was loaded to all suitable storing capacities (for example Nibulon company loaded maize to own barges standing in the rivers), however soon all the reserves were fulfilled. Unfortunately, agrarian companies had to stop maize harvesting campaign even in own farming-enterprises, stated Aleksey Vadaturskiy, the Head of Nibulon.

 Cargill invests in new animal feed mill in Ukraine

Cargill announced on Dec. 17 plans to invest $7 million in Ukraine to construct a new animal feed mill. The feed mill, which will be built in Kutsovka, marks the company's entry into the animal nutrition market in Ukraine.

The mill has the capacity to produce, mix and pellet approximately 50,000 tonnes of bagged and bulk animal feeds per year. Construction is expected to begin in January 2011, and it is anticipated that the facility will be operational by the end of 2011. The new facility is expected to employ up to 40 full-time positions.

"By entering the animal nutrition market in Ukraine, we are expanding Cargill's existing network of animal feed plants globally in order to meet the growing demands of the livestock industry," said Dan Burke, head of Cargill's animal nutrition business in Europe. "In recent years, we have seen a significant increase in meat consumption and meat production in Eastern Europe. This investment will enable us to leverage our global expertise, technology and knowledge to support the growth of this renewed livestock sector in Ukraine."

Once operational, the mill will distribute feed, under the Purina brand, to local dairy, swine and poultry livestock farmers through a dealer network. Cargill expects this network will be made up of over 100 dealers in three years' time. While the mill is being built, Cargill intends to explore opportunities to help meet current local demand for animal feed.

Cargill has been based in Ukraine since 1991, and it has a significant presence mainly in the food and agricultural sectors, including grain and oilseeds origination and processing. With over 700 Ukraine-based employees, Cargill is one of the leading foreign investors in Ukraine.

"With significant operations on the ground, we plan to draw on synergies from our established grain and oilseed business and to leverage valuable contacts and existing relationships built up by our long-term commitment to Ukraine," said Malcolm Sayer, general manager of Cargill's animal nutrition business in Ukraine. "We are fortunate to have received strong ongoing support from both the agricultural community and government and we believe we have a meaningful role to play in this sector and, in the process, help raise rural GDP and support local farmers' incomes."        

Egypt discusses wheat security pact with Russians

Egypt's trade and industry minister, Rachid Mohamed Rachid, has met with his Russian counterpart to try negotiate a long-term agreement to ensure supplies of wheat.
At a press conference, he said he had discussed a long term agreement with Russia to secure uninterrupted supply of Russian wheat, irrespective of any force majeure.

Russia is able to come back on the world grain market

There are no any problems for Russian grains to come back on the world grain market, stated Arkadiy Zlochevskiy, the President of the Russian Grain Union. However, the price for Russian grains should certainly be lower compared to the competitors price, due to the risks presence, noted A.Zlochevskiy. The Administrative decisions unpredictability may become the risk in the case, and as consequence, contracts non-compliance.

While talking about the harvest results in 2010, A.Zlochevskiy noted that the final rate of grains harvesting totaled 62.5 mln tonnes, but not 60.5 mln tonnes, according to the official data of the regions. At the same time, agrarians hid about 3 mln tonnes as losses, due to the droughts. Probably, it is due to the fact that Russian grain producers did not receive compensation of own losses in the full volume. The devoted funds by the Government covered only 20-25% of the damage, and even part of the funds did not reach agrarians, stated A.Zlochevskiy.

Besides, the Head of the Russian Grain Union noted that according to the analysis of the droughts in 2010 – 60-80% of the losses were not due to the weather condition, but due to the technological reasons.

If the agricultural technologies were observed bu agrarians, the droughts could decrease grain production volumes by 4-7 mln tonnes, but not by 37 mln tonnes, assured A.Zlochevskiy.

The President of the Russian Grain Union explained that gradual slowly increase of the manufacturability in grain production during 10 years with culmination in the season of 2007-2008 stopped in the conditions of the world economic crisis, which was during the grains season of 2008-2009.

Grain productions manufacturability decreased in Russia till the level of lower than before the crisis. To date, the condition of manufacturability processing on the fields is not the best, resumed A.Zlochevskiy.

In 2010, Russia lowered grain production by 38%

During January-November of 2010, the general volume of agricultural production in Russia decreased by 12.4% as opposed to the same period of the last year, and totaled 2289.5 bln RUR, declared the Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation (Rosstat).

As of December 1, 2010, agricultural enterprises in Russia harvested grains and leguminous plants throughout the areas of 76% of the sowings, including grains – 58.3%. Agrarians harvested sunflower seed throughout 76.8% of the planned harvesting areas.

Agricultural enterprises of all varieties of the Russian Federation (agricultural organizations, farmers and the population) produced 63.4 mln tonnes of grains in bunker weight, a decrease of 38.2% compared to the same date of the previous year, and 5.3 mln tonnes of sunflower seed, down 17.2%.

Traditionally, agricultural enterprises produced the main share of grains (77.1%) and sunflower seed (72.5%) in the country.

As of the beginning of December, agricultural organizations sowed winter grains for the harvest-2011 throughout the areas of 11.1 mln ha, down 17.8% compared to the previous year.