Market info - Sunflower kernels
Sunflower kernels
Shortly after the responsible authorities in Ukraine agreed on an export limit for sunflower oil, a possible export stop for sunflower seeds is already being discussed.
In addition to this, a proposal was put forward in the middle of this week to also restrict exports of sunflower seeds this season. It is now being discussed whether the export of sunflower seeds from Ukraine will be completely stopped between 15 May and 30 September 2021. The aim is to stabilise domestic prices, which have more than doubled since the beginning of the season. High demand from overseas ensured that around 183,000 mt of sunflower seeds were exported in the first seven months of this season, an increase of almost seven times compared to the same period last year.
In the first six months of the 2020/2021 season, around 7.2 million mt of sunflower seeds were processed in Russia, according to APK-Inform, which is 7% less than in the same period last year. This decline is due to the lower availability and the price increase in the international market. According to experts, declining processing figures are therefore also expected in the second half of the season. Meanwhile, Russian sunflower seed farmers have so far sown 160,300 ha for this year's crop, which is 1.9% of the planned area of 8.4 million ha and a slight increase compared to last year.
The sowing delays in countries such as Bulgaria and Moldova will inevitably mean that the sunflower seed crop will be available on the market later than usual this year. Coupled with the already tight supplies and (possible) export restrictions on goods from Russia and Ukraine, prices for the coming season are still predicted to be significantly higher than in previous years.