Ukraine: Production of malting barley in Ukraine will make 1.1 million tonnes this year, according to the estimate of General Director of Ukraine's largest Slavuta Malt Plant Mykola Dubyna quoted by AgriMarket.Info on October 21.

Dubyna said current situation on the Ukrainian malting barley market was considerably better than last year's one, where there had been virtually none of locally produced good quality malting barley. Therefore, he forecasts a price reduction for malt, produced in the 2004/05 season. "Generally speaking, malt will cost on average by $20 per tonne less than it did last year", he said.

He said he would insist that the major clients of his plant should refuse from purchasing import malt or the malt, produced from imported barley, since the plant would certainly be able to cater them a good quality product, produced from locally grown barley.

Mr. Dubyna expressed a regret that none of the official statistics body in Ukraine was handling a barley production statistics with subdivision into feed and malting barley sectors, which hampers precise crop estimates of the two varieties.

According to APK-Inform estimate, the combined barley crop in Ukraine in this year has amounted to about 11.4 million tonnes.

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