After an interruption of nearly five years, Russia, one of the world’s leading wheat producers, has come to compete with France on the Algerian market, whose needs are constantly growing.
Russia is expected to supply 28,000 tonnes of wheat to Algeria, according to statements by agri-food freight operator Rusagrotrans reported by Reuters on June 21. It would be the first such shipment in nearly five years, with the last Russian wheat delivery to Algeria dating back to December 2016.
The loading would take place from one of the Black Sea ports, where Russia continues to develop its port logistics capacities, with the construction of new transhipment infrastructure in Novorossiysk.
Russia, one of the world’s leading wheat exporters, has been trying for several years to find a place in the Algerian market, one of the few major importers to which it had no access until recently.
In fact, until recently, unlike its competitors, mainly French and German, Russian wheat did not meet the quality standards required by the Algerian Interprofessional Cereals Office (OAIC) which has a monopoly on ‘import. However, these standards were recently lowered to cope with Algeria’s chronic production deficit, which only covers a little over a third of its annual needs (around 11 million tonnes per year).
Nothing to worry about the French cereal producers who continue to dominate the imports of wheat in Algeria. Algeria remains a strategic market which absorbs between 25% and 30% of French wheat surpluses depending on the year, with annual deliveries close to four million tonnes on the average for the last five years. And, while Algerian production is stagnating at around four million tonnes per year, despite a proactive government policy, the needs of the population, which is growing at a rate close to 850,000 people per year, are constantly increasing.
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