Saudi Arabia: Barley production in Saudi Arabia has steadily decreased since peaking at 2.0 million tonnes in 1994-95 and is expected to be nil for 2004-05. It is the single largest barley importing country in the world. The 10-year average is 5.5 million tonnes and in 1986-87 it imported a record 9.0 million tonnes of barley.

For 2004-05, barley imports are forecast to decrease to 6.5 million tonnes from 5.7 million tonnes in 2003-04. The demand for feed barley fluctuates from year-to-year, depending on pasture conditions. The majority of the barley is fed to camels and secondarily to sheep and goats. In recent years, Russia and the Ukraine have been the major suppliers. Australia is also a major player since it has a competitive advantage in this market due to low freight costs. The EU continues to be a major player in this market but its market share has been decreasing over time. Canadian exports of feed barley to Saudi Arabia trended upwards during the 1990s, peaking in 1996-97, but have since decreased due largely to limited supplies of feed barley available for export. Canada’s livestock sector continues to provide higher returns to barley producers than the export market.

For 2005-06, barley production in Saudi Arabia is forecast to remain nil and imports are expected to decline slightly, to 0.6 million tonnes, due to a larger than normal carry-in from 2004-05. Ending stocks are forecast at 2.3 million tonnes, down from 2.6 million tonnes in 2004-05, but significantly higher than the 10-year average of 1.9 million tonnes. Imports from Canada are expected to be minimal due to the strong domestic market for feed barley in Canada.

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