Bulgaria: Bulgarian Oilseed Crops Shrink to Decade-Low Level

In marketing year (MY) 2024/25 Bulgaria harvested its lowest oilseed crop for more than a decade due to extremely hot and dry summer weather conditions impacting yields. The total oilseed crop for sunflower, rapeseed and soybeans is estimated at just over 1.6 million metric tons (MMT), compared to 2.0 MMT the previous year. FAS/Sofia has made further reductions in its estimates based on the final harvest data. The current FAS/Sofia estimate for the rapeseed crop is at 175,000 MT, down by 15 percent from last year. In MY 2023/24, Bulgaria was a net importer of rapeseed with growing trade driven by expanding domestic crush capacities and this trend is projected to strengthen in MY 2024/25 with forecast imports of above 200,000 MT. The sunflower crop is estimated to fall to 1.5 MMT in MY 2024/25, also down by 15 percent from last year, despite higher planted area. These developments have resulted in a deficit of oilseeds, prices creeping upward, a decline in oilseed exports, higher imports, and sluggish crush.