A COVID success story Sales of soyabean oil expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic, with biodiesel use growing in the USA and imports increasing in key markets such as South Korea and India. Is this trend set to continue? Diana Yordanova With global markets and daily consumer habits disrupted for more than a year due to the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic, some oils and fats sales have grown – and a key example is soyabean oil. This is true worldwide, from North and South America, to Africa, Asia, and Europe. In the USA, where soyabean oil has historically been the largest feedstock for biodiesel in volume and market share terms, this key use expanded still further in 2020. Figures from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) show that in May 2020, 805M pounds of soyabeans were used as biodiesel feedstock; compared to 659M pounds in May 2019. COVID-19 lockdowns are the reason why. “Declining restaurant traffic and
structurally lower demand in the HRI [hotel, restaurant, institutional food service] sector limited the availability of yellow grease or used cooking oil as a feedstock,” vice president of market intelligence for the United Soybean Board and the US Soybean Export Council (USSEC), Mac Marshall told Oils & Fats International. Waste oil collections were disrupted by the disease and meat plants – major suppliers of biodiesel feedstock – were shut down because of COVID outbreaks. “In the early stages of the pandemic, pork processing was operating at significantly reduced capacity, which limited the availability of white grease as a feedstock,” explains Marshall. William McNair, the director of oil and human proteins at the USSEC, adds that soyabean oil sales have also benefited from a positive reputation for health, especially as the pandemic prompted consumers to make healthy dietary choices. This trend has come as concerns rise over the environmental impact of palm oil, affecting its sales. As a result, soyabean oil prices have risen to levels not seen since 2014. In January 2021, the oil’s US sales price reached a record US$0.45/lb (453g) compared with US$0.24/lb in April 2020 when the coronavirus had started spreading, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) statistics show.
Photo: United Soybean Board
SOYABEAN OIL
Looking at world soyabean oil demand, the US government reported that 59.6M tonnes were sold worldwide during the October 2019-September 2020 marketing year (MY), compared with 56.7M tonnes for the same period in the previous year. This has been good news for American producers. “Last season (MY2019/2020), the US exported record levels of soyabean oil, primarily to South Korea and throughout Central America,” says Marshall. “Domestically, 2020 was a record year for crush volumes and the production of oil has increased. “Through November 2020, US soyabean oil production is up 2.8% over 2019,” says Marshall. And sales may continue to rise, notes McNair, given that the US and European economies continue to be depressed by COVID-19 while other regions, notably in east Asia, have started living a relatively normal life, with standard consumer consumption.
Fluctuating market in China
The USSEC programme manager for human utilisation focusing on the ‘greater’ China region (including Taiwan), Jinrong Qian, confirms that tight supply has caused the Chinese soyabean oil market in 2020 to fluctuate. In the early stage of the pandemic outbreak, China’s demand and imports u dropped. Demand for biodiesel was
4 – OFI MARCH-SEPTEMBER 2021 ONLINE EDITION ● TO SUBSCRIBE CLICK HERE
Soyabean oil 4,6.indd 2
30/03/2021 12:20:14
