Canada: Malting barley exporters target Mexican market

Canada’s malting barley industry is setting its sights on the Mexican market. It is the world’s second largest importer of processed malt and the third largest buyer of malting barley, said Peter Watts, managing director of the Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre (CMBTC). Canada is eager to expand sales into that market to reduce its reliance on China and the United States, two markets where there have been a series of recent trade challenges. CMBTC has been focused on market diversification the past couple of years, and Mexico is an obvious first choice. It is the second or third largest market for Canadian processed malt in any given year, but it has not been a buyer of malting barley until recently. “It’s the same old Canadian story,” said Watts. “It’s price. We’re an expensive origin.” Mexico’s maltsters have been buying their malting barley from the U.S., France and Australia. But now that Australia is back in the Chinese market after a four-year hiatus due to a trade ...