World Can Expect Second Year of Record Grain Production - FAO

The world can expect to see record grain production for the second year in a row. Corn production growth of 4.4 percent will drive output for the 2020/2021 season to new heights, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

The organization forecasts cereal grain production of 2.781 billion tons - an increase of 2.6 percent over the previous record set in 2019/2020, noting that despite the uncertainties generated by the pandemic, the supply and demand scenario should be “comfortable”. Corn production is expected to increase by 64.5 million tons to a record 1,207 million tons (1.2 billion tons) on the back of record crops in the U.S., Canada, and Ukraine, and near-record crops in Brazil and Argentina.

Rice production will also break records, coming in at 508.7 million tons - an increase of 1.6 percent over 2019/2020 output, as wheat production is forecast to decline compared to the prior year.

Global grain consumption is expected to increase by 1.6 percent to a record 2,732 billion tons, with corn consumption rising by 3 percent, due to demand for ethanol production and from the feed industry - especially in China. More on this story