USDA increased world coarse grains trade forecast for 2007/08 this month and is expected to reach record-high levels despite record coarse grains prices and very high freight rates.

World coarse grains trade for 2007/08 (October-September trade year) is projected to reach a record 119.4 million tonnes (mt), up 1.75 million this month.

USDA raised its 2007/08 forecast of the US average soybean price to a record high $8.50-$9.50 per bushel from the previous range of $7.85-$8.85 per bushel.

As with soybean oil, current prices for palm oil, sunflowerseed oil, and other vegetable oils are setting record highs nearly everywhere. Many countries are attempting to temper the high costs by dropping import tariffs or raising export tariffs on domestically produced vegetable oils.

The European Union has launched its next re-think of the Common Agriculture Policy, but Europe’s livestock industry is already looking—and finding—areas of concern.

Coceral and Fefac urge the EU farm council to take a serious look at the conclusions stated in the DG AGRI Report "Economic Impact of Unapproved GMOs on EU feed imports and livestock production".

This year, more feed has been consumed in the Brazilian feed, pet food and fish feed sectors, according to Brazilian Feed Industry Association estimations.

Livestock producers paid 21% more to feed their animals in November than they did a year ago, USDA said in its November Agricultural prices report.

According to a new technical market research report, Enzymes for Industrial Applications (BIO030E) from BCC Research (www.bccresearch.com), the global market for industrial enzymes will be worth $2.3 billion in 2007. This is expected to increase to over $2.7 billion by 2012, a compound average annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4%.

Feed prices are soaring in Thailand. Hardest hit have been pig farmers, who face rising costs of feed but also a fixed selling price.