Browse Data and Analysis

Total Saudi wheat imports for 2025/26 are forecast to decline 10 percent to 3.2 million metric tons (MMT), due to projected high local production. Saudi barley imports for MY 2025/26 are projected to increase by 10 percent to 3.3 MMT compared to last MY.

The Ministry of Agriculture has taken unprecedented steps to alleviate the soaring rice prices that have plagued Japan since the summer 2024 rice shortage.

FAS/Tokyo estimates lower wheat and barley production in Marketing Year (MY)2024/25 from the previous year as unfavorable weather conditions and disease outbreak have reduced yields in main production regions.

FAS/Tokyo forecasts an increase in corn imports and consumption in MY2023/24 and MY2024/25 due to softening global prices and the rebound of the layer population following the recovery of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza outbreaks.

With the development of several billion-dollar projects and nearly 30 million visitors a year, the future for U.S. grain exports is bright. Post anticipates Saudi rice imports to increase approximately five percent over the next several years due to expansions in the food service sector.

The General Food Security Authority (GFSA), an agency of the Saudi Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture (MEWA), purchased approximately 1.2 million metric tons (MMT) of locally produced wheat in MY2022/23.

FAS/Tokyo estimates lower MY2023/24 rice production in Japan as extremely high temperatures and little rain are expected to lower yield and quality.

On March 20, Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare (MHLW) and Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (MAFF) added a waxy corn product to their lists of genome edited products not subject to regulations for genetically engineered food, feed, and biodiversity.

FAS/Tokyo projects reduced corn imports and feed consumption in MY2022/23 due to large outbreaks of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza as well as increased competition from domestic feed rice, followed by a recovery of corn consumption in MY2023/24.

FY2022 agricultural exports reach record levels.

The 2021 U.S. Agricultural Export Yearbook provides a statistical summary of U.S. agricultural commodity exports to the world.

The Saudi Grains Organization (SAGO) projects domestic wheat production at 700,000 metric tons (MT) in MY 2021/2022, up approximately 17 percent from USDA’s official estimate of 600,000 MT. Experts anticipate local domestic wheat production could reach 1 million metric tons (MMT) in MY 2022/2023 to offset expected import delays from Russia and Ukraine as a result of the ongoing war.