June 16 (Reuters) - Egypt's grain sector has been pushed towards chaos after suspicion that a cargo of Russian wheat may have carried false quality documents.
Following are some details of Egypt's consumption and import system as well as Russia's wheat output and exports.
For an analysis on the likely consequences of the Egypt, Russia spat over wheat imports, double-click on
For a Timeline of the events double-click on
EGYPT WHEAT IMPORTS
* Egypt is among the world's top two wheat importers, alongside Iran. It consumes around 14 million tonnes of wheat a year, of which it imports nearly half.
* Much of the wheat Egypt buys goes towards subsidised bread, a main component of its economic policy that allows millions to survive on low salaries and wards off discontent.
* Egypt is currently the biggest consumer of Russian wheat with more than four million tonnes estimated this season.
* Egypt Social Solidarity Ministry says it has 4 million tonnes of strategic wheat reserves that are enough to last until the end of 2009.
The figure includes 2.8 million tonnes of local wheat procured during the current season, one million tonnes more than the amount procured in the same period last year.
* Egypt imports a vast majority of its wheat through tenders launched by the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC).
* Egypt has not bought wheat at an international tender since April 30, when it purchased 60,000 tonnes of Canadian wheat for late May shipment.
* Among foreign firms participating directly in GASC tenders Switzerland's Glencore sold the most wheat since the start of the year with 180,000 tonnes of French wheat sold from January 2009 to date.
Other foreign sellers winning GASC tenders in the same time period included:
- France's Louis Dreyfus with 60,000 T of Canadian wheat
- U.S. Bunge with 60,000 T of French wheat
- U.S. Cargill with 30,000 T of Russian wheat
- France's Soufflet with 60,000 T of French wheat
- France's Lecureur with 60,000 T of French wheat and
- France's Invivo with 60,000 T of French wheat
* International firms also sell wheat to private Egyptian firms which then go on to participate in GASC tenders. Since 2006, GASC has increasingly turned to companies such as Egyptian Traders, Alex Grain, Venus, Union and Horus, for its supplies.
In the period from January 2009 until April 30 private Egyptian importers sold the following:
- Egyptian Traders: 120,000 T of Russian wheat
- Union (Abodonkol): 265,000 T of Russian wheat
- Alex Grain: 75,000 T of Russian wheat and 115,000 T of U.S. soft red wheat
- Venus: 180,000 T of Russian wheat and 60,000 T of U.S. soft red wheat
- Horus: 320,000 tonnes of Russian wheat
RUSSIAN WHEAT OUTPUT AND EXPORTS
* Russia is the largest wheat exporter in the Black Sea region, ahead of Kazakhstan and Ukraine.
* Russia has pledged to double grain exports in the next 10 to 15 years and play a leading role in helping the world tackle a looming food shortage.
For an ANALYSIS on Russia's grain export ambitions, please double-click on
For U.S. Department of Agriculture data on wheat production and exports from the world's major wheat countries, double-click on
* Russia harvested 63.7 million tonnes of wheat in 2008, which is an all-time high output, up from 49.4 million in 2007, according to data compiled by WJ Grain, leading grain and oilseed processors/traders in Russia and neighbouring states.
* WJ Grain estimated the country's total wheat exports in the 2008/2009 season that ends on June 30 at some 17.7 million tonnes, up from 11.4 million last season, when Russia stopped exports by high export tariffs from January to July 2008.
* WJ Grain forecast Russia's 2009 wheat crop at 61.1 million tonnes and exports in the 2009/10 crop year (July-June) at over 20 million tonnes.
* Russia's agriculture ministry said last week that the country had exported 19.9 million tonnes of grain in the current 2008/2009 crop year, including 17 million tonnes of wheat and 2.9 million tonnes of barley.
(Reporting by Sybille de La Hamaide in Paris, Maha El Dahan in Cairo and Alexandras Budrys in Moscow; Editing by Veronica Brown)