Browse Data and Analysis

In market year (MY) 2025/2026, FAS Bogota (Post) forecasts Colombia’s sugar production to recover to 2.3 million metric tons (MMT) due to improved weather conditions from the weakening of the La Niña phenomenon and expected normal weather patterns, positively impacting sugarcane yields and sucrose content.

On March 5, 2025, Colombia's National Institute for the Surveillance of Food and Medicines (INVIMA) confirmed that starch is approved by the Colombian government as an additive for use as a thickener and stabilizer agent in fresh cheese.

The United States remains the top international supplier to Colombia's food ingredients sector.

For marketing year (MY) 2025/26, Post forecasts a slight increase in cotton imports due to increasing demand in the ready-made garments industry.

For marketing year (MY) 2025/26, Post forecasts lower rice imports than in MY 2024/25, assuming higher production based on favorable weather. Demand for wheat continues to increase and Post forecasts slightly higher imports for MY 2025/26 to align with demand.

Anyone exporting food or feed products to Colombia should note that since March 2025, Colombian quarantine officials have stopped allowing updates to many details on import permits and are no longer allowing any changes after the products have left port.

Colombia’s economic recovery together with growing domestic livestock and poultry production are driving Colombia’s corn demand. With the rapid development of poultry and egg production in particular, corn consumption is projected to increase in market year (MY) 2025/2026 to support strengthening demand from the animal feed sector.

The installation of Bangladesh’s Interim Government in August 2024, has led to a renewed focus on macroeconomic stability, which will enable increased exports to the market as restrictions on Letters of Credit ease as foreign currency reserves stabilize.

In 2024, U.S. agricultural exports to Colombia reached a record high of $4.5 billion, a 21 percent increase from 2023. This growth, supported by the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement, represented the highest rate among the top 25 U.S. agricultural export markets globally.

On January 18, 2025, Colombia's National Institute for the Surveillance of Food and Medicines (INVIMA) confirmed that cellulose is approved by the Colombian government as a cheese additive for use as an anti-caking agent in grated and/or granulated fresh cheese for surface treatment.

SaborUSA Colombia, FAS Bogota's flagship marketing campaign, partnered with the U.S. Popcorn Board (PB) to promote American popcorn through a social media contest.

For the marketing year (MY) 2024/25, Post lowers rice harvested area and production to 11.4 million hectares and 36.6 million metric tons (MT), respectively, due to an estimated loss of around 300,000 hectares of aman season rice from two consecutive floods in August and October 2024.