9th Edition of Foodcom’s PLANT-BASED Newsletter

Ongoing situation on the European market is still highly connected to war operations in Ukraine. The invasion was soon followed by export bans which incite trouble in supply chains. Food import dependencies are clearly visible as countries that have restricted exports of grain register a lot of difficulties such as commodity speculation. Want to know more?

Potato protein

Still no signs of finding a perfect substitute for potato protein. The good thing is that customers are finally ready to pay more for potato protein itself. The steady rises in prices are set to continue as the market remains fairly stable. Another piece of bad news is that potato protein producers were able to buy only 25% of the potatoes they would normally be getting, as farmers are sitting on their crops waiting for higher prices to come. We expect the price for Q3 to be 3000 EUR/MT or higher.

VWG

The new price is estimated to be higher than the previous week’s price due to Ukraine’s inability to export massive supplies of wheat. Before invasion, Ukraine was providing around 4-5 millions of tonnes of wheat per month onto the European market. Then the number dropped to 1 million per month, and right now, there is a probability of massive issues with obtaining wheat from Ukraine. The buyers seem to be getting used to changes, especially bakers. Gluten is the main protein in wheat flour that provides the structure necessary to make rolls, buns, or a loaf of bread.

HWG

Slight changes in the volume of HWG on a market. The producers cannot assure the estimated data of delivery, end consumers are being squeezed by energy prices. This has an impact on dairy farmers because the peak demand for HWG can be seen in the cattle industry as it’s being used as a component of calf milk replacers. Moreover, vegans and sport-oriented consumers are most affected by this situation and are looking for cheaper substitutes.

Dextrose

Dextrose is commonly known for its usage as a sweetener, and it can be found in products such as processed foods and corn syrup. In view of the current situation, we can observe a shortage of dextrose on the market, especially in Europe. This led to an increase in price of the product, oscillating around 1700-1800 EUR/MT. What’s interesting, dextrose is successfully derived from various products like fruit (the visible trend in the Austrian and Hungarian market) or corn.

Corn Gluten Meal

Corn gluten meal, often used in aqua feeding, is available in Europe despite trouble in the supply chain noted in previous weeks. These quantities aren’t high though. We see some quantities of corn from Ukraine, but the queues on the borders are long so the delivery time is uncertain.