Ukraine expects record rapeseed harvest, new all-time high export potential - analysts

MOSCOW. Aug 29 (Interfax) - Ukraine is expecting a record rapeseed harvest of 4.2 million tonnes thanks to the expanded acreage and high yields, while the export potential of the market and processed goods will also hit a new all-time high, Ukrainian media said with the reference to experts from the Ukragroconsult analytical agency.

"The token of such results is not just a large harvest and commissioning of the new processing facilities, but also the resolution of logistic problems," the report said.

Export statistics indicated a rather active beginning of the season in July, which is important amid the unavailability of the grain corridor, the analysts said. Logistics refocused on Danube ports and land corridors across the western borders.

September contracts envisage rapeseed transportation by truck and rail, the experts said, referring to market actors.

The analytical agency also noted a shift in the geography of rapeseed exports and products of its processing. Now Ukrainian rapeseed is delivered not so much to EU member states as to the UK, Switzerland and Bangladesh. The same applies to the rapeseed oil, which mostly goes to China and Malaysia instead of the EU market.

At the same time, 95% of rapeseed meal goes to the EU market, and the remaining 5% goes to Vietnam.

As of August 22, 2023, Ukraine exported about 500,000 tonnes of rapeseed and more than 58,000 tonnes of rapeseed oil, analysts say. It is also noted that the current export performance allows considering optimistic scenarios.