High prices and expensive freight left Ukrainian grain out of Turkey’s tender
1.10.2025 - 15:27
Turkish Grain Agency TMO purchased 255 thousand tons of feed barley, giving preference to suppliers from the Russian Federation and Romania.
The Turkish Grain Agency (TMO) held a tender for the purchase of barley on September 30, purchasing 255 thousand tons at prices ranging from 248.9 to 257.57 USD/ton CFR depending on the port of destination. This was reported by ASAP Agri.
Shipments are scheduled for the period from October 9 to November 7 in batches of 10–25 thousand tons to the ports of Iskenderun, Izmir, Bandırma, Mersin, Tekirdag, Samsun, Trabzon and Giresun.
For comparison: in the previous tender on July 31, TMO purchased 225 thousand tons at prices of 231.9–235 USD/ton CFR, which was cheaper than the current level.
Most of the contracts were secured by suppliers from Russia and Romania, while Ukrainian sellers did not participate in the tender due to higher price expectations. Offers from Ukrainian origin are around 216–217 USD/t CPT port or 230 USD/t FOB POC.
“Farmers do not agree to lower prices, storing goods in warehouses. At the same time, freight rates are increasing every day: “handysize” transportation to Marmara already starts at 20 USD/t. This shapes the market in favor of farmers and shipowners,” the expert noted.
According to official data, this season Ukraine harvested 5.3 million tons of barley — less than last year, when the harvest was 5.8 million tons.
Meanwhile, exports through Romanian ports could reach 2.5 million tons in the first quarter of the season.
