Australia: Heavy rains may affect barley quality

Heavy rains in the eastern part of Australia may affect barley qualities, much less likely also yields, H. M. Gauger GmbH reported earlier this month.

As per ABARES, the production surpasses the excellent crop of last year, and private sources even deem a final production number of 14 mln tonnes possible.

After a huge domestic consumption and small exports in the drought year 2019/20, markets came back to normal in 2020/21: domestic consumption is forecast at 3.3 mln tonnes (4.5 the year before), exports at 9.2 mln (4.0). Malting barley exports, however, dropped from 1.3 to 0.5 mln tonnes. Malt exports recovered from 0.743 to 0.858 mln tonnes.

China remains a closed outlet for Aussie barley, but the dramatically short supplies of malting barley in Canada, the U.S and the EU open the doors for these exceptional export destinations. Sales are rumoured of two 30 thousand tonne cargoes to Canada.

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