Milling & Baking News - June 18, 2019 - 26

Organic Update

Organic wheat and soybean
prices decline in April-May
KANSAS CITY - Prices for organic
food-grade hard red winter wheat, durum and soybeans during the AprilMay period declined from FebruaryMarch with wheat prices also down
from a year ago, according to Mercaris, the organic and non-G.M.O. trading platform and market information
company.
Hard red winter wheat averaged
$9.50 per bu in April-May, down $5.01
from February-March, down $3.02
from December-January and down
$1.53 from April-May 2018.
"Organic hard red winter wheat
prices continued falling in May, with
the delivered organic food grade price
averaging $9.50 per bu for the twomonth period ended May 31," said
Ryan Koory, senior economist at Mercaris. "The recent decline in delivered
prices may be the first indication that

wheat crop at the moment, rather than
securing durum contracts. However,
organic spring wheat planting appears
to be nearly complete, with farmers
over the month of May quickly making up for the season's slow start. Purchasers are likely to soon turn their
focus back to the spring wheat crop."
There was insufficient trade during
the latest period to generate quotes
for either hard red spring wheat or
soft red winter wheat. Organic hard
red spring was quoted at $20.62 per
bu last month for the March-April period. Soft red winter was last quoted
at $9.66 per bu in October 2018 for August-September. A year ago, hard red
spring averaged $16.62 per bu and soft
red winter averaged $10.92 per bu.
Organic food-grade soybean prices
in April-May averaged $21.78 per bu,
down $1.67 from February-March but

Organic soybean imports "slowed to
a mere crawl" in May at 4,800 tonnes,
the lowest since November 2011, with
shipments arriving only from India
and Canada, the company said.
"Although May imports appear to
be an extreme case, the month actually only highlights a trend that has
built over the past two years with U.S.
buyers expressing a preference for
organic soybean meal imports over
whole soybeans," Mercaris said in its
June 11 Market Update. May soybean
meal imports of about 31,000 tonnes
were down 20% from April but were
up 137% from May 2018 and the third
highest on record.
Meanwhile, sluggish second-quarter organic corn trade resulted in insufficient contracted volume to generate an April-May price quote, Mr.
Koory said. Organic corn averaged
$10.61 a bu a year ago.
"Looking to quarter three, Mercaris
will be releasing its 2019 Organic and
Non-G.M.O. Acreage Report, providing

Organic food-grade grain prices
National average price based on eight-week rolling average
- Change from -
April-May Feb.-March Dec.-Jan. Year ago
NA
NA
NA
$16.62
$9.50
-5.01
-3.02
$11.03
NA
NA
NA
$10.92
$15.75
-3.60
NA
$18.07
NA
NA
NA
$10.61
$21.78
-1.67
+2.02
$21.29

©DANIEL VINCEK - STOCK.ADOBE.COM

in $ per bu
Hard red spring
Hard red winter
Soft red winter
Durum
Corn
Soybeans
Source: Mercaris

this year's crop is indeed large and in
good shape.
"Overall the U.S. winter wheat
crop appears to be in good condition.
Based on data from U.S.D.A., Mercaris estimates the share of the U.S.
organic winter wheat crop rated in
good-to-excellent condition reached
69% the week ended June 3, up from
53% last year."
Mercaris will release its 2019 Organic and Non-G.M.O. Acreage Report in the middle of the third quarter,
at which time a better evaluation of
the organic winter wheat crop can be
made, Mr. Koory said.
Food-grade organic durum averaged $15.75 per bu in April-May,
down $3.60 from February-March and
down $2.32 from a year earlier.
"Organic durum wheat prices
pulled sharply lower in May following
a decline in contracting activity," Mr.
Koory said. "Durum wheat prices may
be feeling pressure as buyers are likely
more focused on assessing the winter
26 / June 18, 2019

Milling & Baking News

up $2.02 from December-January and
up 49c from April-May 2018.
"Organic soybeans are pulling back
from their bullish second-quarter start
but are holding onto their premium
over year-ago levels," Mr. Koory said.
"In general, the market remains precariously placed between the havoc
this unprecedented wet spring has
created for farm operators and the
questionable impact of the U.S.D.A.'s
May decision to suspend the organic
certification authority of the Control Union Certifications Turkey office (CUC-Turkey). While weather
remains a mixed bag in terms of what
it will mean for the U.S. organic soybean crop, the ramifications of the
CUC-Turkey decision look to be less
significant as imports from the Black
Sea region (the region impacted by
this development) continue to diminish in importance."
Mercaris noted a shift from imports of organic food and feed grade
soybeans to organic soybean meal.

the first glimpse of what impact the
flood is expected to have on U.S. organic soybean supplies," Mr. Koory
said. "Additionally, Mercaris will be
keeping a keen eye on organic corn
and soybean contracting for signs of
supply certainty and price direction
ahead of the fall harvest."
Organic broiler slaughter in May
was estimated at 4.7 million birds, up
7% from April and up 9% from May
2018 after several months of decline
from year-ago levels, Mercaris reported. January-May slaughter was estimated at 22.4 million birds, about even
with the same period a year earlier.
Mercaris is a comprehensive source
of market data and online trading for
feed-grade and food-grade organic
and non-G.M.O. commodities based
in Silver Spring, Md. For more information visit www.mercaris.com. Sosland Publishing Company runs this
food-grade organic grain price report
in the second issue of Milling & Baking
News each month. MBN
bakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com

http://STOCK.ADOBE.COM http://www.mercaris.com http://www.bakingbusiness.com http://www.world-grain.com

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