Organic soybean prices remain steady as imports rose more than expected in September according to the most recent data from the US Customs Department. The Jacobsen had previously estimated that organic soybean imports into the US in September would rise by slightly more than 33K metric tons, compared to the more than 40K tons that were confirmed in trade data by the US Customs Department. For the 2019/2020 marketing season, organic soybean imports into the United States increased by 11% year over year according to The Jacobsen.
Year to date, the majority of the organic soybeans that have been imported into the US have come from Russia. Slightly more than 62K metric tons of organic soybeans have reached US shores from this destination. Second has been Ukraine which has exported slightly more than 50K metric tons to the United States followed by Argentina who exported slightly less than 50K metric tons of organic soybeans to the United States.
India is now the fourth-largest exporter of organic soybeans to the US, exporting slightly less than 30K metric tons, year to date, as of the end of the Q3 of 2020. Â This compares to more than 80K metric tons of organic soybeans that were exported to the US in 2019 during the first three quarters of the year. India remains the largest exporter of organic soybean meal to the US.
Western Africa has also moved into the fray. During 2020, Togo and Ethiopia have started to export organic soybeans into the United States. Approximately 11K metric tons of organic soybeans have been exported to the US in 2020 from Togo and nearly 3K metric tons of organic soybeans have come from Ethiopia.