Browse Data and Analysis

Container freight shipments have slowed to a trickle since a cyberattack took Costa Rica’s customs and taxation systems offline on April 18. Significant delays and increased costs are compounding challenges faced by Costa Rican importers already coping with pandemic-related supply chain disruptions and the war in Ukraine.

On May 16, 2022, the Government of Mexico (GOM) published a presidential decree temporarily exempting the payment of import duties on 66 tariff lines covering staple food items and basic commodities for food processing. The tariff suspension is part of the GOM’s recently announced Program to Combat Food Price Inflation and Scarcity.

On May 2, 2022, the Ministry of Consumer, Food and Public Distribution, through the Directorate General of Foreign Trade announced approval for the importation of an additional 550,000 metric tons (MT) of soybean meal (including GE derived).

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has become an ultimate test of the resilience of Ukrainian agriculture. The country’s food security depends on a variety of factors, including farmers’ ability to produce key staple foods.

The Republic of Korea (ROK) has joined international commitments to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 and passed a Carbon Neutrality Act in 2021 to promote green growth. Although the agricultural industry will be relatively less impacted than some other sectors (including energy), agricultural producers will need to make some adjustments.

Bangladesh consumes approximately 6 million metric tons of chemical fertilizers annually, of which about 80 percent are imported. The four major imported chemical fertilizers in Bangladesh are urea, triple super phosphate, diammonium phosphate, and muriate of potash (MOP). Russia and Belarus were the dominant suppliers of MOP in Bangladesh.

The new Costa Rican government has announced a resumption of Hass avocado imports and proposed abolishing minimum prices for milled rice, following through on campaign promises to respect international law and address rising consumer prices.

In the first quarter of 2022, U.S. agricultural exports fell to the lowest level in four years. While expanding U.S. direct exports to China, and lingering shipping issues continue to drive the overall decline in U.S. agricultural exports to Hong Kong, government restrictions in response to the city’s fifth wave of the pandemic exacerbated the drop in U.S. agricultural sales.

Rice export prices decreased 1-2 percent due to the weakening of the Thai baht.

Nigeria’s current 10-year Sugar Master Plan (NSMP) will end next year – likely moving on to another 10-year Phase Two Plan. The growth in sugar consumption is expected to be driven by the food processing sector.

On May 19, 2022, the Philippine Department of Agriculture issued Memorandum Circular No. 8, governing the rules and procedures for evaluating new plant breeding techniques.

The South African Agricultural Economic Fact Sheet has been updated to include calendar year 2021. Bilateral agricultural trad between the United States and South Africa reached record levels of US$860 million in 2021.