Jordan: Grain Imports to Suffer as Jordan Struggles with Low Growth in 2020

Jordan is dependent on grain imports, any disruption to trade will jeopardize the country's food security and its stability. FAS Amman forecasts wheat imports in marketing year (MY) 2020/21 at 850,000 metric tons (MT), down 50,000 MT or 5.5 percent lower compared to the USDA official MY 2019/20 estimate of 900,000 metric tons. The drop is due to the Ministry of Industry Trade and Supply scaling back purchases of wheat for its targeted assistance programs. Corn imports in MY 2020/21 are forecast at 675,000 MT, down 325,000 MT or 32.5 percent lower than the USDA official MY 2019/20 estimate of 1.0 million metric tons. The drop in imports is due to decreased demand for corn by the poultry and dairy sectors and due to excess inventory in MY 2019/20. Rice imports in MY 2020/21 are forecast at 215,000 MT, down 35,000 MT or 14 percent lower than the USDA official 2019/20 estimate of 250,000 metric tons. Imports of U.S.-origin rice at 100,000 MT, will account for almost half of themarket share.

Jordan: Grain Imports to Suffer as Jordan Struggles with Low Growth in 2020