World grain production expected to rise in 2024 despite Russia-Ukraine war: Expert

ISTANBUL

Despite the continuing Russia-Ukraine war, global grain production is expected to increase by 8 million tons year-on-year in 2024, according to the head of the International Association of Operative Millers Eurasia.

There were fluctuations in global food prices last year because of the war between these two countries that are leaders in wheat exports, Eren Gunhan Ulusoy told Anadolu.

After the war began in February 2022, grain prices, especially wheat, registered significant spikes due to production and logistics problems.

However, solutions such as the Black Sea Grain Initiative helped iron out issues by paving the way for resumption of exports, said Ulusoy, who also owns two Turkish flour companies Ulusoy and Soke.

For Russia, production projections for the coming season are currently around 83 million tons, a decline of some 8 million tons, due to recent unfavorable weather conditions, he added.

Türkiye’s wheat production

On Türkiye’s wheat output, Ulusoy said the country’s production has been at a record level for the past seven years, reaching 22 million tons in 2023.

This year’s production is projected to dip slightly to 21 million tons because weather conditions were dry and hot in April, especially in the Central Anatolia region, he said.

“Although a decrease is expected in the estimated output, this will still be a better production season than the average of many past years,” he added.

Ulusoy also pointed out that Türkiye, the world’s largest flour exporter for the past nine years, set a new flour export record of 3.7 million tons in 2023, earning $1.5 billion.

“In 2024, industry stakeholders agree that the figure for flour exports will exceed 4 million tons,” he said.

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