Global demand for soyabeans, soyaoil and soyameal is likely to rise as traditional consumers of drought-damaged oilseed crops in Europe seek alternatives, Hamburg-based oilseeds analysts Oil World forecast on Tuesday. "The global dependence on soyabeans will increase in the 2010/11 season owing to smaller than expected world production and supplies of rapeseed and canola as well as of sunflower seed," it said.
"This will result in increased imports and crushing of soyabeans in China, other Asian countries as well as in the European Union and many other countries," it said.
A heatwave this summer has cut the EU's rapeseed crop. Droughts in Russia and Ukraine have brought export restrictions on grain and are also thought to have damaged the countries' sunflower seed and rapeseed crops.
"For the European Union we expect that oilseed crushers will step up soyabean imports and increase (soyabean) crushings to offset reduced processing of rapeseed and sunflower seed," it said. Rising demand is also expected in 2010/11 for soyaoil and soyameal for largely the same reasons, it said. "Considerable crop damage in several important countries is going to result in reduced availability of feed wheat and other farm fodder supplies as well as of rapemeal and sunflower meal," it said. "This will further raise world demand for soyameal and corn." Recent increases in soyameal demand have been noted in regions including the EU, Iran, South Korea, several other Asian countries and Central America, Oil World said.