Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Record Argentine Wheat Harvest Collides With Baking-Quality Shortfall

Low protein in the crop is forcing process changes across mills.

Overview

  • Argentina’s 2025/26 wheat output reached a record 27.8 million tonnes with a national yield peak of 43.5 quintals per hectare, and the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange pegs export receipts near US$3.7 billion, below the higher-dollar 2021/22 cycle.
  • Arbitration labs tested 3,170 samples from Buenos Aires and found average gluten at 20.7% with only 3.5% above the roughly 26% panification threshold, confirming the scarcity of baking-quality wheat reported by FAIM.
  • Mills have shortened kneading, cut water and fermentation times, and intensified grain sorting to keep flour within spec, while bakery groups report deteriorating loaf quality and rising operating pressures.
  • Exporters must still place roughly 10 million tonnes after registering 8–8.7 million, segmenting shipments and diversifying sales toward Southeast Asia, North Africa and feed-use destinations including China.
  • Price discounts tied to low protein are helping win tenders — trade reports indicate about 600,000 tonnes sold to Algeria near US$254 per tonne C&F — but lower values and rising feed diversion are weighing on returns, with analysts warning of a potential need for imported corrector wheat.