January 15, 2009
Philippine '08 soymeal imports down 14 percent
Philippine imports of soymeal last year declined 14 percent to 1.485 million tonnes on lower feed output, an industry official said Wednesday (January 13).
The lower imports could also be attributed to be unusually high inward shipments in 2007 as some feed millers stocked up amid projections of higher import prices, this official, who declined to be named, said.
Feed millers have already contracted 436,433 tonnes of soymeal for this year, mostly from the US and Argentina.
Last year, feed output totalled 6.5 million tonnes from 7.3 million tonnes in 2007. Production this year could continue on its downward trend from previous years.
