Market News & Headlines >> Russian Wheat Headed to Brazil

Russia has started supplying wheat to Brazil for the first time in eight years, the Russian veterinary and phytosanitary watchdog Rosselkhoznadzor said on Monday, according to a report from TASS, Russia’s state-owned news service. 

"The first lot of Russian wheat amounting to 26.2 thousand tonnes was shipped to Brazil from the Kaliningrad Region for the first time in eight years," the authority said. Specialists of the regulator negotiated conditions of the Russian wheat export to the Brazilian market with the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, the Russian authority said. 

According to information from the exporting company received by Rosselkhoznadzor, the mentioned lot of Russian wheat underwent all the laboratory tests for compliance with quarantine phytosanitary requirements of Brazil and was authorized for import without any restrictions from the Brazilian side. 

Phytosanitary issues have for years barred any potential Brazilian deals for Russian wheat. Talks to liberalize bilateral grain and meat trade were finalized in December.

Brazil is one of the largest wheat importers in the world and traditionally buys most of its imports from neighboring Argentina. Brazil imported 7 million metric tons of wheat in 2017/18, according to USDA, which expects it to import 7.5 million tons in 2018/19. When Argentine wheat is not available, Brazil frequently relies on North American wheat, U.S. or Canadian, but Brazil imported no U.S. wheat in 2017/18 for the first time in 30 years.