The agreed export of 30,000 tons of wheat and 17,000 tons of corn to Albania has begun to be realized, the Association “Zita Srbije” told Tanjug. The director of that association, Sunčica Savović, said that the exporters waited five days to get a formal permit from the Government of Serbia for that export, and that, with the approval of the government, small quantities of cereals will be exported to Italy.
Savovic added that export for only one Italian buyer in the amount of 67,000 tons of corn and 17,000 tons of wheat was allowed.
The Ministers of Agriculture of Serbia and Northern Macedonia previously agreed that the export of wheat, corn, flour and edible oil to Northern Macedonia would be continued according to previously agreed quantities.
The SCC considers that exports should be allowed
The Serbian Chamber of Commerce estimates that the temporary ban on grain and flour exports to other countries should be lifted or at least export quotas should be introduced so that producers can take advantage of current high prices and wages, until they begin to fall as the new harvest approaches.
When it comes to Italy, Savović says that the approved quantities for export are small, having in mind that between 27 and 30 percent of our wheat and corn exports go to Italy.
“Last year, the country bought about half a million tons of corn and about 340,000 tons of wheat, and members of the Association ‘Grains of Serbia’ had contracts with Italian importers for 195,000 tons of wheat and 160,000 tons of corn until the government’s decision to ban exports,” she said. is Savović’s.
She added that “Zita Srbije”, according to the agreements concluded earlier, has obligations to export 459,000 tons of wheat to various markets by June 30, and 670,000 tons of corn by September 30.
A new genus is coming, less corn, more sunflower
Savovic presented data that 621,000 hectares were sown with wheat last fall, and if the yield is at a ten-year average of 4.8 tons per hectare, it means that we could expect less than three million tons of new fruit.
According to the spring sowing plan, he says, corn should be based on 950,000 hectares, so with the projection of a ten-year average yield of 7.5 tons per hectare this year, we could expect 7.1 million tons of this grain.
“It is expected that this year the area under corn will be slightly reduced in favor of sunflower, which has become attractive for sowing due to the war in Ukraine, because it is in demand as a commodity, and also because it needs less fertilizer. It is estimated that it will be sown on 245,000 hectares, and if it produces three tons per hectare, as in the last three years, the yield would be around 735,000 tons, “Savovic said.
She estimated that this spring, the area under soybeans will be at the level of last year or a little higher.
We will have about 240,000 hectares under soybeans, with the expectation that the yields will be 3.2 tons, which is about 770,000 tons at the level of the entire country, if the weather conditions serve.
Last year, due to the drought, they were only two tons per hectare, the director of “Zita Srbije” noted.
She emphasized that these projections do not depend only on meteorological conditions, but also on whether farmers will have enough money to finance sowing, because their huge quantities of goods, due to the export ban, are trapped in silos, and they are forced to finance sowing costs. at market prices of derivatives, seeds, fertilizers and protective agents that are constantly growing.
“Before the export ban, the stocks that were supposed to enter the new production year were 430,000 tons. Since all this is happening slowly, we will enter with historical stocks and we will have two problems, the silos are full of wheat and corn, so the question is where we will place the new sorts and when such full silos will be loaded and 2022 will come. to the ideal conditions for the appearance of pests and the decline in the quality of stored cereals “, Savović pointed out.
Allow earnings while prices are good
The secretary of the Association for Plant Production and Food Industry in PKS, Aleksandar Bogunović, says that the ban on the export of cereals and flour should be lifted, or at least quotas should be introduced.
“We have been waiting for a long time for the export ban to be lifted, because it is close to harvest, and the surplus is estimated at over one million tons of wheat and close to two million tons of corn.” Given that last year was worse for corn, because yields were about 30 percent lower than expected, and wheat had a very good yield, it is important to lift the export ban as soon as possible so that our producers earn money while “Prices on world stock exchanges are very good,” Bogunovic told Tanjug.
He added that about 30,000 hectares more were sown with wheat this fall than the previous production year, which means that we could expect about four million tons of new bread grain.
He pointed out that last year’s good yield of wheat and the high price on the stock exchanges coincided with us, which should be used to reap the benefits of the situation on the world market.
“The ban was passed for a shorter period and we expect it to be lifted in the foreseeable future.” Our recommendation, as well as the manufacturer’s recommendation, is not to introduce a total ban, but to introduce quotas. That the state defines the quantities that could leave the country until the next harvest and that the dynamics of exports be monitored, considering that you really cannot export large quantities in a short period of time that would endanger our stability, “said Bogunovic.
He stressed that, in addition, silos must be emptied of the old wheat crop to receive the new crop, Politika writes.
