Indonesia increases wheat imports as drought reduces feed grain supply

By Naveen Thukral and Bernadette Christina SINGAPORE/JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesian grain buyers are increasing imports of lower-quality wheat as a decline in corn production last year following a severe drought linked to the El Niño weather pattern reduced supplies of animal feed in the country. Wheat imports to Indonesia, the world's third-largest buyer of the grain, are expected to increase by at least 10% in 2024 from around 10.87 million tonnes last year, according to Singapore-based grain traders. “Indonesian millers have been purchasing larger volumes of wheat mainly from the Black Sea region,” said a trader from an international house based in Singapore. “Some of the wheat is of inferior quality and is expected to be used in animal feed.” Indonesian importers signed contracts to buy about 300,000 metric tons of lower-quality wheat in recent weeks, mainly from Ukraine and Russia, at $260-270 per ton, including cost and freight, for shipment from February to March, traders ...