World Grain - May 2019 - 21

ants on average. In the north - Lower Saxony, Bremen,
Schleswig-Holstein, Hamburg - the average is one mill
per 551,155 residents.
According to the cereals sector market research organization GMF, 89% of Germans regularly eat bread or rolls.
At Green Week in Berlin in January, they released survey
results showing fresh fruit and vegetables came next at 85%
followed by dairy products at 83%. Based on annual producWLRQ¿JXUHVWKH\SXWSHUFDSLWDFRQVXPSWLRQLQDW
80.9 kilograms. The level has been stable at between 80 and
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or minus 4% a year. The mean for the period since German
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Germany's total grain production
(in million tonnes)

60
50
40
30
20
10
2019-20**

2018-19*

2017-18

2016-17

2015-16

2014-15

*Forecast **Projected
Source: International Grains Council

total grain exports in 2018-19 at 8.1 million tonnes, with
imports at 11.3 million. Wheat exports were 5.2 million
tonnes, with imports at 3.7 million. Rye exports were just
under 145,000 tonnes, with imports just over 522,000
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with imports at 1.3 million.
MILLING INDUSTRY CONSOLIDATING
According to the European Flour Milling Association, Germany had 205 mills in 2017. The number has been falling
steadily. For example, there were 317 mills in 2007. Of the
total, 29 have a production capacity of over 100,000 tonnes
(wheat equivalent) per year.
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EDVHGRQRI¿FLDOVWDWLVWLFVWKDWLJQRUHPLOOVZLWKDQDQQXDO
capacity of less than 1,000 tonnes. The industry association
Verband Deutscher Mühlen put the total as of January 2019
at 550 mills, 196 of which have a capacity of over 1,000
tonnes a year. The association highlighted the progressive
consolidation of the industry by pointing out that there
were almost 19,000 mills in the country in 1950, a number
that fell to around 2,500 by 1980, before falling again to its
current level.
The German industry body put the total amount of grain
milled in Germany at some 8.9 million tonnes, including
7.7 million of wheat and 800,000 tonnes of rye, along with
400,000 tonnes of durum. The output is around 6.2 million
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about 300,000 tonnes of durum products.
The industry is somewhat concentrated in the southern states of Germany, notably Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, Rheinland-Palatinate and Saarland. The German
association pointed out that in the south - Bavaria and
Baden-Württemberg - each mill serves 173,637 inhabitwww.World-Grain.com / World Grain / May 2019

BIOFUELS AND BIOTECH
Germany is the E.U.'s largest consumer of fuel ethanol,
getting through a total 1.486 billion liters in 2018, according to the USDA attaché.
"In 2017, German ethanol production decreased by
8.8%," a report on the E.U. biofuels sector said. "The German Bioethanol Industry Association attributes the decline
to a lower German consumption of E10 versus E5 gasoline and lower ETBE use. A slight recovery is forecast for
2018."
The attaché forecast German fuel ethanol production
at 910 million liters in 2018, second in the E.U. only to
France, for which the forecast is 1 million liters. The main
feedstock for ethanol production in Germany is wheat, although sugar beets also are used.
German consumption of biodiesel in 2018 is forecast at
2.540 billion liters, second in the E.U. to France with 3.025
billion. Germany is the E.U.'s largest producer of FAME
(fatty acid methyl ester) biodiesel, with a 2018 forecast of
2.610 billion liters. Biofuel use in Germany is mandated
based on the greenhouse gas savings compared to fossil
fuel, at a level of 6%.
German public opinion remains strongly anti-biotech,
even though the country is home to some of the world's
leading companies in the sector.
"Public rejection of genetically engineered (GE) plants
in Germany is widespread," an attaché report on the issue said. "There is no commercial GE crop production
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Organisms (GMO) on the market. Despite this, Germany
is home to world-class companies that develop and supply
GE seeds globally."
With public opposition to genetic engineering running at
a steady 80%, the attaché sees little prospect of the market
opening to GM crops. Germany does, however, import GM
soy to use as animal feed.
Chris Lyddon is World Grain's European correspondent.
He may be contacted at: chris.lyddon@ntlworld.com.
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World Grain - May 2019

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