Commodities
Soaring Imports of Green Diesel Feedstocks Disrupt US Soy Market
- High level of imports and new capacity are hurting margins
- Companies are closing plants for longer on weaker demand
A farmer harvests soybeans near Worthington, Minnesota.
Photographer: Scott Olson/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
A surge in imports of used cooking oil and other ingredients for biofuel production in the US is eroding profits for soybean processors, forcing them to slow down and jeopardizing expansion plans.
Faced with weaker demand, companies are starting earlier than usual on seasonal maintenance, closing plants for longer periods. Some 20 million bushels (540,000 tons) of crush capacity were offline across the Corn Belt in April — a record for the month — including at big plants from Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. and Cargill Inc., according to CrushTraders. At least 10 million bushels are set to be turned off in May.