Bulgaria: Grain and Feed Market Update

FAS/Sofia has revised downward its estimate for Bulgaria’s MY 2024/25 corn crop to 2.2 million metric tons (MMT), which if realized would be the smallest crop in over a decade. This is due to severe summer heat and drought in July and in early August. MY 2024/25 will be the third consecutive year of significantly below-average corn yields and this may have a longer-term impact on planting intentions going forward. Conversely, based on the latest harvest data the estimate for the barley crop is increased to a record high level of 930,000 MT (compared to about 797,000 MT last year) and the previous wheat estimate remains at 6.9 MMT, similar to last year. Abundant winter grains production, a much higher quality of the crop, and favorable export demand have all led to a strong start to the export season, especially for barley. However, bleak prospects for the corn crop have made farmers more reluctant sellers lately.