Official says Russia starts wheat shipments to Morocco

BUENOS AIRES, Feb 27 (PRIME) -- Russia has started wheat exports to Morocco and has shipped 377,000 tonnes so far, Yulia Korolyova, head of the center for grain safety and quality assessment of the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Oversight, told PRIME on Tuesday.

“Exports to Morocco have started, two Panamax (grain carriers) have departed recently, each carrying 60,000 tonnes, A total of 377,000 tonnes were shipped over the first seven months of this agricultural year,” Koroleva said.

She said that a test batch is to be soon dispatched to Algeria.

Russia sells grain to almost all African states, including the North African states, Nigeria, South Africa, Yemen, Tanzania, Kenya, Mozambique, Ghana, Senegal, Congo, Uganda, Sudan and Lebanon.

Koroleva also said that a delegation from Columbia will visit Russia over the next several months in order to discuss wheat imports.

Supplies to Brazil will be constant but small due to competition from Argentina, she said. Brazil removed restrictions on Russian wheat imports in December 2017 and bought the first batch of Russian wheat in July 2018. The current amount of supplies stands at 30,000–35,000 tonnes per ship.

Russia exports grain to Mexico, Ecuador, Brazil, Chile and Venezuela. Grenada has recently expressed interest in the imports.

According to the grain center, exports of wheat have amounted to 28.6 million tonnes since the start of the 2018–2019 agricultural year on July 1.

End