Cereal imports will climb to 12.16 million metric tons from 11.36 million tons in 2010-11, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization forecast in a report on its website dated yesterday.
Saudi Arabia decided in 2008 to gradually phase out all water-intensive crops including wheat by 2016, after halting subsidies to grow barley in 2003 to save water, according to the Rome-based FAO.
The kingdom is forecast to import 2 million tons of wheat in the 2011-12 year, the UN agency said. Imports of barley and corn, mainly used for feed, are forecast at 6.7 million tons and 2.2 million tons respectively, according to the report.
Domestic wheat production is estimated to have dropped 13 percent to 1.1 million tons this year following adoption of the 2008 decree on crops, the FAO said.
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To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Carpenter atccarpenter2@bloomberg.net
