The grain stockpile in Tunisia is estimated to cover two months of consumption, according to what was revealed by the Grain Office, and that stocks of consumption grains (hard wheat, soft wheat and fodder barley) available on October 25, 2021, given the contracted purchases, provide total coverage of needs up to mid-February 2022, Including the estimated monthly consumption of buffer stock for each item.
In a statement on Thursday, the Office clarified that the purchases contracted for, which are in the process of being completed, are estimated, respectively, at 411 thousand tons of hard wheat, 390,000 tons of soft wheat and 361 thousand tons of fodder barley.
The Office also referred to what the global grain market has witnessed, since mid-July 2021, of an escalation in prices that reached record levels, especially hard wheat, whose price is currently approaching 820 dollars per ton. It is expected that these prices will maintain their high levels, especially for durum wheat, until the beginning of the next harvest season.
The Office is seeking opportunities in order to continue its procurement program to secure the country’s needs of this substance until the end of 2022.
With regard to soft wheat, the Office affirmed that given the abundance of production at the global level and the relative stability of its prices, the country’s supply of this material will continue as normal.
It is noteworthy that the final and official outcome of the grain infection in Tunisia for this season amounted to 16.4 million quintals, with a total of 7.9 million quintals. The national needs of cereals are estimated between 28 and 30 million quintals annually, which means that the difference in the yield of cereals for this season will be covered by the continuation of supply, especially soft wheat.
