CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, U.S. — U.S. shipments of distillers’ dried grains (DDG) to Thailand have been halted due to new fumigation requirements imposed after beetles were discovered in a shipment in 2018, according to a report by Reuters.
Traders told Reuters trade has stopped as the two governments negotiate which gas is best for fumigation.
The report said that since Jan. 1, Thai regulations require all DDG shipments entering the country to be fumigated with methyl bromide, but many U.S. shippers would prefer to use phosphine.
DDG is a byproduct of dry ethanol production and is used as an animal feed ingredient.
Thailand is viewed as a key market for U.S. ethanol makers, particularly since China, which was formerly the top importer of both DDGs and ethanol, has halted purchasing those products due to the U.S.-China trade war.
Thailand was the fourth largest overseas market for DDG in 2017, importing 738,413 tonnes of the product, which is primarily used to feed poultry and livestock.
