Queensland’s grain infrastructure is being tested to the limit as ports designed for grain exports are now the preferred avenue to access much-needed interstate supplies.

ongoing drought conditions have savaged grain crops in southern Queensland and northern NSW for a second consecutive year leaving the north desperately short of grain to meet the needs of the for feedlots and other grain users.

Brisbane and Newcastle ports, which are normally business loading grain onto bulk ships destined for south east Asia are now at the centre of efforts to supply domestic needs. Exports terminates designed to load grain have been re-engineered unload grain interstate grain ships.

Numbers of vessels scheduled to unload grain in Brisbane has surged over the past eight weeks as it becomes increasingly difficult to access grain by road as supplies in south eastern Australia become scarcer. Traders are saying that more than 400,000 tonnes of interstate wheat and barley was scheduled to be unloaded in Brisbane in July and August.

The sheer volume of the task has presented enormous challenges. One of the most significant tasks has been keeping the constant supply of grain trucks to unload the ships within the tight discharge times imposed by the shipping companies. There have been multiple reports of trucks having to wait hours to unload the flood of grain into nearby feed millers.

Traders are expecting the flow of interstate grain to continue well into next year as the prospects for the east coast harvest continues to deteriorate. Southern Queensland is expected to harvest one of its smallest winter grain crops in many years. But the absence of any meaningful harvest from NSW, which has endured the epicentre of the drought, means the bulk of the grain supplies will have to be drawn from afar.

Bumper summer crop represents the next opportunity to bring relief to the crippling grain prices. Darling Downs farmers are anxious to plant a massive sorghum crop, but widespread soaking rains are needed if this is to occur.

Grain prices continued to surge last week traders as end users struggled to access the volumes needed, which is now mostly coming by interstate shipments from Brisbane. New season’s wheat jumped $20 to $460 a tonne into Brisbane. Prices are now being set by the price of wheat and barley in WA and SA with allowances for the interstate shipment and discharge costs.

International grain markets took a breather last week after the sharp rally over the past month. US wheat futures were sold sharply lower late last week following a selloff in corn, after the USDA forecast record high US yields.

Tighter global wheat supplies is expected to keep world wheat prices well supported through the 2018/19 season. The USDA slashed its forecast of the EU wheat crop by 7.5 million tonnes, now down more than 14 million tonnes on last year. Australia’s wheat crop was left unchanged at 22 million tonnes, a figure which most Australian traders see as optimistic.

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