MADRID, SPAIN — Facing a second consecutive year of poor grain crops, Spain will import a significant amount of grain to meet domestic demand, pushing its supply chain to deliver from port to end user, according to a Global Agricultural Information Network report from the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) of the US Department of Agriculture.

Spain is the European Union’s grain imports leader, accounting on average for 70% of the 27-member bloc’s annual number. The anticipated reduced in-country grain availability, even with lower demand, will lead to a greater grain shortfall and increased import needs, FAS Post Madrid said. Early estimates indicate that Spain’s grain imports in marketing year 2023-24 are set to break 20 million tonnes.

“Despite the somewhat sluggish overall grains demand, a large amount of grain imports will be necessary to meet Spain’s consumption needs,” the FAS said. “Ports are expected to operate at high capacity, and unloading, in-land transport and grain storage logistics will be particularly key to allow grains to flow toward consumption areas.”

According to the latest official statistical release by the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA), winter grains area is expected to amount to 5.2 million hectares. Year-to-date rainfall, the lowest on record across most of Spain’s main growing regions, and above-average temperatures through mid-May have reduced expectations for winter grain crops in 2023. 

The combination of poor winter grains production projections for wheat and barley and lower-than-anticipated area planted to corn (250,000 hectares) and rice (59,800 hectares) in spring is expected to keep the country’s total grain production to barely 12 million tonnes. Yields are expected to be down well below 2022-23 levels, when limited rainfall volumes already resulted in a short domestic grain crop, the FAS said.

Spain’s total grain consumption in 2023-24 is currently projected at over 34.6 million tonnes, down slightly from the over 34.9 million tonnes estimated for 2022-23. Animal feed accounts for over 75% of the country’s demand, about 26 million tonnes annually. The grain-based bioethanol industry also is a significant consumer in Spain, absorbing annually about 1.1 million tonnes of grains. Given the poor domestic grain crop anticipated, bioethanol plants are expected to run entirely on corn, the FAS noted.

Even with Spain’s strong import dependency and the poor domestic crop registered in 2022-23, the country’s ending stocks of grains are projected to expand compared to the previous season, as farmers may opt to hold onto their grains in expectation of a recovery of grain prices during 2023-24.