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 The following Global Agricultural Information Network (GAIN) reports were released on Tuesday, March 24, 2020. Palm oil production is expected to reach 43.5 million tons in 2020/21 as increased area is partially offset by lower yields resulting from fewer inputs and sub-optimal rainfall during 2018-2019. Palm oil exports and soybean imports for 2019/20 are revised downward due to expected weaker demand overseas and domestically as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The Government of Japan announced increased support for dairy farmers and processors to mitigate impact of reduced milk consumption in schools following the government’s decision to close schools due to COVID-19. Approximately 10 percent of drinking milk in Japan is diverted to school meal use. The support program is budgeted at $21.5 million and will provide price supports for excess milk diverted to further processing and nonfat dry milk diverted to animal feed.
Stable demand for feed and relative price competitiveness are forecast to maintain Japan’s robust demand for corn in MY2020/21. Sorghum imports are expected to remain flat as feed mills continue to substitute sorghum with competitively priced corn in compound feed. To date, concerns over the spread of COVID-19 have not affected feed demand or production in Japan. A bumper crop for domestic wheat and barley lowered estimates for MY2019/20 imports. Population decline and changing dietary preferences are beginning to have an influence on FSI wheat consumption. Japan is likely to only fill 76,543 tons of its 100,000-ton simultaneous buy and sell rice import quota.
For more information, or for an archive of all FAS GAIN reports, please visit gain.fas.usda.gov/.
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