Russia bans exports of durum wheat

The Committee on Customs and Tariff Regulation of the Russian Government decided to ban exports of durum wheat from the country from December 1, 2023 to May 31, 2024.

In accordance with the proposal from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Economic Development, a tariff quota was set on exports of main grains — wheat, barley, corn, rye — from February 15 to June 30, 2024. The quota amounts to 24 million tons; it does not apply to supplies to the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).

Durum wheat is widely used for the production of pastas. According to Interfax, experts explain the decision to ban exports of durum wheat with a significant rise of such exports. The Russian Grain Union indicated that shipments of durum wheat in annual terms increased by almost 13 times from July 1 to November 10.

Representatives for the Ministry of Agriculture earlier said that there was a decline in global durum wheat harvests. Therefore, a poor harvest created an increased demand on this product in many countries of the world.

At the same time, Bloomberg reported that Russian wheat exports fell sharply due to declining prices amid record harvests and falling demand from key buyers. Attempts of the Russian authorities to set minimum prices on wheat also created problems for producers. Egypt refused to purchase 480,000 tons of Russian wheat in September.