The Netherlands rejects six GMO soybean shipments

Slowly, the wheat price on the Matif is finding its way upward. The May contract did take a step back, but the first contract of the new harvest rose to the highest point in a month. Relatively high energy prices and drought in the US supported the market. The Netherlands has refused six ships loaded with soybean meal from South America. Traces of genetically modified varieties that are not allowed on the European market were found in the soybean meal. The May wheat contract on the Matif closed yesterday €2.75 lower at €195.25 per tonne. The first contract of the new harvest did close higher, however, rising €1.75 to €217.25 per tonne. On the CBoT, wheat took a small step back after the sharp rise earlier this week. The May contract closed 6¾ cent lower at $6.42¼ per bushel. Corn was in the green with 1¼ to $4.66½ per bushel. Soybeans gained 9¼ cent to $11.82¼ per bushel. Drought in the US and the stalemate between the US and Iran in the Strait of Hormuz caused the first contract for the new harvest on the Paris exchange to rise to the highest point in a month. Reuters reported this morning based on sources at the US State Department that the US wants to form an international coalition to get shipping in the Strait of Hormuz moving again. The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday, based on sources around Trump, that the US president is taking into account that the Strait of Hormuz will remain blocked for a longer period. The American news site Axios writes that Trump has been briefed on possible new military actions in Iran. The reports from the White House are somewhat contradictory we can conclude. Drought in Midwest and DeltaIn the US, drought on the southern prairies is a cause for concern. In the Midwest and the Delta, significant rain fell this week, but the prairies where most American wheat is grown have had no precipitation. In the northern prairies and the northwest of the cornbelt, frost has been reported locally. The agricultural attaché of the US Department of Agriculture in Canada estimates the coming wheat harvest in Canada at 36.2 million tons. This means the harvest will be about 10% lower than last season. Part of the lower harvest is due to a smaller sown area and part to yields that are expected to come in closer to the multi-year average, according to the USDA. For Australia, the USDA now expects a wheat harvest of 29 million tons, or 19% compared with last season. GMO In Europe, there is plenty of discussion about GMO soybean meal. Earlier this week it became known that the Netherlands has refused 3 ships loaded with soybean meal from Argentina because traces of the HB4 gene, which is not allowed in the EU, were found there. Meanwhile it is known that it concerns six ships, four from Argentina and two from Brazil. HB4 was developed by the Argentine biotech company Bioceres and ensures that soybeans can better withstand drought. The chairman of the Argentine Grain Exporters Association and Soybean Crushing Industry Association (CIARO-CEC) Gustavo Idigoras thinks the soybean meal shipments were rejected on the basis of a false positive test. It is not the method patented by Bioceres and can therefore lead to so-called 'false positives', or incorrect detections, Idigoras told Reuters. We think this is happening in Europe. The Netherlands is an important entry port for soybean meal that then disappears further into Europe. That was also the intention with the ships that were refused. The soy from Argentina was according to sources intended for Belgium, Germany and Czechia and the Brazilian soy for France, Italy and Luxembourg. Dependent The EU is largely dependent on soybean meal from Brazil and Argentina, which is mainly used in feed. According to the latest figures from the European Commission, the EU has imported 7.4 million tons of soybean meal from Brazil and 5.0 million tons from Argentina this season. Together these countries account for a market share of 85%. By comparison, number three is Ukraine, which exported 961,000 tons of soy to the EU this season. Genetic modification remains a difficult subject for the EU. GMO crops may not be grown in the EU. GMO crops from outside the EU are however allowed on the European market for use in animal feed. The relevant variety/gene must then have approval from the European Commission. That is not the case for some drought-tolerant soy varieties grown mainly in Argentina.