Uruguay exported malting barley to Europe for the first time. The cargo, of 28 thousand tons, left from the Port of Nueva Palmira in Colonia bound for the Netherlands, informed The Observer Bruno Maneiro, agronomic manager of Maltería Oriental, the company in charge of the business.
The cargo was valued at US$ 9.7 million, at an FOB value of US$ 369 per tonaccording to Customs data consigned by Tardáguila Agromercados.
Most of the barley is destined for industrialization and is exported malted, although Uruguay also sells raw barley abroad..
In the last harvest, 74% of Uruguayan malting barley exports were marketed in Brazil, 15% in Paraguay and 5% in Bolivia, according to data from the Office of Agricultural Programming and Policy (Opypa).
Maneiro emphasized that Uruguay has a very good quality of barleyand that to carry out the business it had to take into account the high demands of the European Union, mainly those that have to do with the presence of pesticide or chemical residues in the grain.
Uruguay produces barley under contract with malting plants, to export 95% after industrialization, as malted barley. The remaining 5% is used in the local market for the Fábrica Nacional de Cervezas (FNC) and seed production.
In 2021, 185,000 hectares of this crop were planted throughout the country, 12% more than in the previous campaign, in which there were 165,000 ha, according to data from the Office of Agricultural Programming and Policy (Opypa) of the Ministry of Livestock , Agriculture and Fisheries (MGAP).
In the last harvest, a production record of 4,500 kilos per hectare was achieved.
This year’s barley area, based on data from a report by the consulting firm Blasina y Asociados for The Observerwas located in 217 thousand hectares of a total of 752 thousand hectares with winter crops, considering wheat, rapeseed and carinata.
other business
In addition to the raw barley business, Maltería Oriental also exported a ship with malt to Belgium, worth US$14 million at US$558 per ton. This cargo was shipped in June from the port of Montevideo.
Juan Ignacio Buffa, undersecretary of the Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries (MGAP), shared the news on his Twitter account, where he stated: “Diversification of markets, new markets and more volume to the agricultural markets that we traditionally serve is working on competitiveness ”.
Twitter: Juan Ignacio Buffa
Uruguay had to meet the high demands of the European market.
