China – beef imports to hit 2.1m tonnes in 2021

Analysis carried out by the USDA forecasts that China will import 2.8m tonnes of carcase weight beef in 2021. This will make China by far the largest global market for beef shipments next year and almost double the size of US beef imports.

Brazil – soya bean production to hit record level

Soya bean production in Brazil is forecast to hit 134m tonnes this year – a new all-time record. At the same time, Brazilian maize (corn) production in 2021 is forecast to hit just under 101m tonnes between first- and second-crop maize.

Germany – milk production falls in November

Milk production in Germany for the month of November stood at just over 2.4bn litres, which is down 0.5% on the same month the previous year. This follows a similar drop off in milk supply for the month of October. German milk supply for the full year of 2020 is likely to hit 31.5bn litres.

US – ethanol production still down on last year

Ethanol production in the US, which is made with maize (corn) as a feedstock, is showing signs of recovery in 2021, but is still weaker than normal levels. New data shows just under 1m barrels of ethanol were produced in the last week, which is still down 4% on the same period last year.