Probe finds evidence of

IN BRIEF

UKRAINE: Crushing companies in the country are facing tight supply of sunflowerseeds due to farmers holding back sales of old crops and low new stocks, compounded by the harvesting campaign’s slow progress due to heavy rainfall, AgriCensus wrote on 22 September.

Market expectations of high sunflowerseed stocks did not materialise, with estimates of stocks as of 1 September at no more than 2.1M tonnes at plants and among farmers in Ukraine-controlled territory.

Meanwhile, crushing companies were trying to keep prices for old and new sunflowerseeds between US$327-373/tonne carriage paid to (CPT) plant including VAT, as they were limited by prices and the timing of the export corridor due to end in November.

Prices in the range of US$327-US$350/tonne CPT plant were typical for sunflowerseed with 46%48% oil content, and above US$350/tonne CPT plant with 50% oil content, the report said. Export prices were significantly higher, ranging from US$515-550/tonne (delivered at place) in Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary.

The report said estimated sunflower exports for 2022/23 would not be lower than 1.6M tonnes and could reach 3M tonnes, mainly to Europe.

RUSSIA: Global agribusiness giant Bunge has agreed to sell its oilseed processing business in Russia to Karen Vanetsyan, the controlling shareholder of Exoil Group, Reuters reported on 19 September. The sale for an undisclosed amount included Bunge's 540,000 tonnes/ year sunflower processing plant in Voronezh, which opened in 2008 and could produce more than 200M bottles of sunflower oil.

Probe finds evidence of Russian grain smuggling

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An investigation by Associated Press (AP) and television series Frontline has found that Russia used a smuggling operation to steal Ukrainian grain worth at least US$530M and used the cash to fund its war efforts, World Grain reported on 3 October.

Using satellite images and marine radio transponder data, AP tracked more than three dozen ships carrying grain from Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine to ports in Turkey, Syria, Lebanon and other locations.

The theft was being carried out by wealthy businessmen and state-owned companies in Russia and Syria, the investigation found. For example, investigators found that the bulk cargo ship Laodicea, docked in Lebanon last summer, was carrying grain stolen by Russia. The vessel likely started its journey in the southern Ukrainian city of Melitopol, which Russia had seized at the start of the war on 24 February.

Melitopol Mayor Ivan Fedorov told AP that Russia was moving vast quantities of grain from the region by train and truck to ports in Russia and Crimea, a strategic Ukrainian peninsula that Russia has occupied since 2014.

The Laodicea reportedly claimed to be carrying grain from the Russian port of Kavkaz when it arrived in Lebanon. The shipper was listed as Agro-Fregat and the buyer was Loyal Agro Co, a wholesale grocer headquartered in Turkey, according to AP's investigation.

A spokesperson for Loyal Agro was quoted as saying that the ship’s cargo came from Russia. However, AP said the Laodicea could not have picked up its cargo in Kavkaz – listed on the bill of lading – as its hull, which reached 8m below water, would have run aground in the relatively shallow port.

Another company involved in smuggling grain was United Shipbuilding Corp, a Russian stateowned defence contractor sanctioned by the USA for providing weapons to the Russian war effort, AP said. The company, through its subsidiary Crane Marine Contractor, bought three cargo ships in the weeks before Putin invaded Ukraine, with the vessels making at least 17 trips between Crimea and ports in Turkey and Syria, according to the news agency.

Russian groups warn of farming disruption

Trade associations in Russia are warning that the country’s planting campaign will be disrupted if farmers are called up for military service.

The warning followed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s confirmation at a meeting of regional leaders on 27 September that farm workers would be eligible for military service as part of the country’s partial mobilisation of reservists to fight in Ukraine, according to an AgriCensus report on the same day.

“Within the framework of partial mobilisation, agricultural workers are also called up," Putin was quoted as saying.

Farming groups said the move could disrupt the final stages of the current harvest and new crop planting.

Agro-industrial unions had asked the government for a deferment from the partial mobilisation, AgriCensus quoted from local media reports.

The Association of Nurseries and Gardeners of the Stavropol Territory, for example, had sent a letter to the Ministry of Agriculture saying that “mobilisation of workers employed in the industrial nursery and horticulture sectors will lead to the disruption of the harvesting campaign”.

The Russian Grain Union was also considering asking the government for a delay in calling up qualified workers, not only to allow field work but also for the processing industry, the report said.

At the time of the report, the Russian grain and oilseeds harvest was near completion with 88% of the crop harvested, but winter sowing had only just started with around 9M ha planted.

AgriCensus said this year’s Russian crop was forecast to reach a record level, with wheat expected to exceed 100M tonnes and the total grain harvest totalling around 150M tonnes.