The price is until mid-November this year Sorghum The minimum price was 220,000 pesos per ton, but then it started to rise. According to a report by , shale values rose from 223,000 pesos to $250,000 in a month, an improvement of 12% AZ Group. During the same period, the price of corn increased from 258,000 to 275,000 pesos, an increase of 6%. This recovery in sorghum prices is mainly due to Chinese purchases. according to the report. The pace of shopping is hectic: The current campaign is the third with the highest foreign sales declarations for sorghum in history, although it is not yet complete. Exports of the last campaign amounted to 1.3 million tons, close to those of the United States. In China the grain is often used as a drink.
“Traditionally, many producers have only incorporated sorghum into crop rotations in campaigns that expected hot summers with little rainfall or to grow grain on plots with productive limitations for growing corn. For some farmers, sorghum also long ago raised doubts about marketing, as there was no market with public prices and it depended largely on the seasonal supplies that exports could receive. Finally, lower genetic development compared to other crops with the correlation of limited potential yields completed the set of questions for the grain,” the report said.
“Today the situation has changed: there are hybrids with great pest resistance and high yield potential; the possible uses of sorghum have become more diverse and go beyond use as animal feed: It has been incorporated into the diet of several countries and sorghum is used to make beer and other alcoholic beverages such as baijiu, which is widely consumed by the Chinese population. “The grain is quoted on futures markets and is in high demand from China, the world’s top buyer, which promises to further increase import volumes in the coming years,” he added.
Bruno Todone, grain analyst at the consulting firm, recalled that global sorghum production is concentrated in ten countries, accounting for 75% of the total harvest. The USA leads the ranking, followed by Nigeria, Brazil, India and Mexico. In this scenario, Argentina ranks ninth among the top ten world producers.
In foreign trade, exports are even more concentrated. Argentina, the United States and Australia together account for 97% of global sorghum shipments. “The global production of this cereal has shown an irregular behavior over time, justified by large fluctuations in the area under cultivation. “Between the 2017/18 and 2024/25 campaigns, global volumes varied from a maximum of just under 63 million tonnes to a minimum of 56 million tonnes, with strong annual fluctuations,” he said.
In this regard, he pointed out that, according to the latest estimates, global production in 2025/26 will be about 63 million tons, of which around 26 million are intended for feed consumption. Global exports amount to around 10 million tonnes annually.
According to the consultancy’s survey, on the demand side, the main importing countries are China, Mexico, the European Union and Japan, which together account for 93% of global purchases.
“China is considered the world’s largest buyer of sorghum because its domestic production is limited: between 2.5 and 3 million tons. Both local production and imports (between 7 and 8 million tons) are mainly destined for feed consumption, that is, animal feed, which accounts for almost 70% of the total, while human consumption accounts for the remaining 30%,” he explained. He added: “In recent years, Chinese sorghum imports have varied greatly.” In the 2018/19 campaign they were below 1 million tonnes, then increased significantly and reached values close to 8 million tonnes in the last campaigns. In 2025, 7.6 million tons will be imported. Delivery comes primarily from Argentina, the USA and Australia, with proportions varying depending on the year.”
At the local level, Todone said there has also been irregular behavior in sorghum production. “The maximum was recorded in the 2010/11 campaign at around 4 million tonnes, while the minimum corresponded to the 2017/18 cycle at around 1.5 million tonnes. The latest available data, corresponding to the 2024/25 campaign, suggests production of just under 3 million tonnes.” he remarked.
“For the 2025/26 cycle, a total supply of 3.5 million tons is estimated, compared to a demand of 3.05 million, which would allow the period to be closed with a final stock of almost 500,000 tons. The harvest is mainly concentrated in the central-northern provinces of our country,” the consultant said.
“In the domestic market, sorghum prices are generally lower than those of corn. On the sidelines of the 2025/26 campaign with trend yields, sorghum is surpassed in the growing areas of sunflower and corn, its main competitors, showing great stability in yields,” says another part of the report.
In this regard, he pointed out that demand for sorghum from China is forecast to continue and large purchases are expected in the coming years. “In this scenario, Argentina has the opportunity to increase its exports, which reached 1.3 million tons in the last campaign. “In addition, sorghum continues to be well represented in the domestic meat market as a feed for animal feed,” he added.
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