IGC Cuts World Grains Ending Stocks Estimate Amid Rising Feed Demand

May 27, 2021

The International Grains Council has trimmed its 2021-22 world grains ending stocks estimate, even as it revised expected production higher.

In its latest monthly Grain Market Report, the IGC dropped its ending stocks estimate to 595 million tonnes, down 15 million from the agency’s April estimate. If accurate, it would the lowest ending stocks level for world grains (wheat and coarse grains) in seven years and the fifth straight year of decline. Compared to the most recent high of 661.8 million in 2016-17, world grains ending stocks for 2021-22 are expected to be down almost 67 million tonnes or about 10%.

On the other hand, the IGC raised its 2021-22 global production estimate to 2.292 billion tonnes, up from 2.287 billion last month and 2.22 billion for the previous year.

In its accompanying commentary, the IGC partially blamed increased animal feeding for this month’s decline in the ending stocks estimate, with 2021-22 total expected consumption rising 10 million tonnes from April to 2.297 billion tonnes. (Total world grains consumption for 2020-21 is estimated by the IGC at 2.237 billion tonnes).

World wheat ending stocks for 2021-22 are seen by the IGC at 288 million tonnes, down from 298 million last month but still up from 286 million for the previous year. The new-crop wheat production estimate was left steady from last month at 790 million tonnes, up from 774 million in 2020-21.

Estimated corn ending stocks for 2021-22 are forecast at 261 million tonnes this month, down 3 million from April and down from 267 million the previous year. World corn production is seen at 1.194 billion tonnes this month, versus 1.192 billion in April and 1.134 billion in 2020-21.

Click here to see more...

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.