European Maize Collapse Triggers Wheat Scarcity and Higher Feed Costs

European feed buyers are scrambling for maize as consecutive heatwaves have devastated French crop conditions, sending them to just 28% good to excellent. This collapse has left livestock producers short of the grain their rations rely on, forcing them to look towards wheat.

The European Union's import requirements stand at a minimum of 25 million tonnes, with feed associations estimating closer to 26 million. However, Ukraine, which usually supplies a large share of this replacement tonnage, cannot export freely due to the ongoing conflict.

As a result, feed buyers are competing against export demand in the wheat market, driving up prices and ration costs for farmers. According to Bertrand Oesterle, Vice President at StoneX Financial Ltd, 'it's that necessity to find the feed either from import or from other sources, i.e., from wheat. But the wheat is currently competing for exports'.

For farmers, the decision now lies in choosing between higher feed costs and smaller herds. Oesterle described sorry-looking cows during a visit to France, highlighting the physical evidence of the tight market.