The world’s farmers harvested a record 2.64 billion tonnes of wheat, rice, and feed grains in 2017, estimated the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. It was the group’s second sharp upward adjustment of its global production figure in two months. In a companion report, the FAO said world food prices are holding steady, with grain, dairy, and sugar prices down slightly in January.
“Global markets for all major cereals remain well balanced, supported by record inventory levels and above-average stocks-to-use ratios,” said the FAO Cereal Supply and Demand Brief. The 2017 grain harvest was 1.3 percent, or 33 million tonnes, larger than the mark set in 2016. “World cereal inventories are projected to climb steadily for the fifth consecutive season, rising to a record-high level of almost 726 million tonnes.” The stocks-to-use ratio, an indicator of the buffer against shortages, was forecast to be the highest since 2001/02.
Mammoth supplies will spur another year of high-volume trading on the world grain market as food makers, livestock feeders, and industrial users take advantage of attractive prices, said the FAO. Some 764 million tonnes of feed grains will be used in livestock rations during 2017/18, the most ever, with China, Brazil, the EU, and Mexico seeing the largest increases in feeding.