“At the end of July 2012 total grain traffic through Romanian sea ports was 8 million tons, from 4.5 million tons in the similar period of last year,” say representatives of CN APM Constanta.
Traffic through Romanian sea ports includes both exports and imports.
Data on exports from Constanta harbor offers an image on the evolution of grain exports in the entire economy, since two thirds of wheat and corn exports are made through this port.
The current situation on the one hand shows the significant demand for grains on international markets and on the other hand the interest of major traders to deliver abroad. Exports of agricultural raw materials are controlled in Romania by major multinational groups such as Cargill, Alfred C. Toepfer, Ameropa and Bunge.
Laurentiu Baciu, president of one of the largest farmers associations on the Romanian market (LAPAR), says the rise of exports is of concern given the drought affecting agriculture for the last few months.
“This is of concern to me as a Romanian because these amounts will later come back at 40-50% higher prices. Farmers have no fault in this because they don’t decide where their merchandise gets. Their concern is to produce and sell the merchandise in order to collect money. The food safety strategy is the state’s responsibility,” Baciu says.
A portion of the grain exports made in the first seven months of the year were from the harvests of previous years.
For instance in the case of wheat only a small portion of the 1 million-ton deliveries made in the first seven months comes from the current harvest, given that farmers harvested their crops in July this year. However, wheat exports between January and August of 2012 are 70% higher than in the similar period of 2011.
Corn exports rise 3.5 times in first seven months
Things are similar with corn, with exports fully made from grains stored in silos. Between January and August traders exported 2 million tons, 3.5 times more than in the similar period of 2011.
“Grain exports depend largely on orders from abroad, as well as on the amounts existing on the market at a certain time. No company keeps its merchandise in a silo awaiting better prices. The export decline will be seen next spring, reflecting this year’s poorer harvest,” says P.R., a grain buyer who sells the merchandise on to the major local traders.
Domestic wheat consumption is estimated at between 3 and 4 million tons per year.
This summer’s wheat harvest reached 4.7 million tons, down 30% on last year amid the drought.
Prices exploded
Amid poorer harvests, the prices of the main agricultural raw materials have started on a significant rise this summer. Prices of the main crops – wheat, corn and barley – went up between 25% and 40% in the first seven months of the year.
The price of wheat reached around 1,064 lei per ton at the beginning of August, up 40% on January.
Corn reached a similar price of around RON1,064 in early August, up by around 30% against the beginning of this year.
The price of barley rose by around 25% since January, to RON1,300 per ton.
(English version by Daniela Stoican)