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Flour Exports by Country Plus Average Unit Prices

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Flour jar spill (courtesy of Pixabay.com)
Flour spill (Pixabay)
Global sales for all types of exported flours totaled US$8.77 billion during 2022.

That dollar amount reflects a 32.5% increase since 2018 when flour exports were worth $6.62 billion.

Year over year, the value of globally exported flours accelerated via an 18.2% advance compared to $7.42 billion for 2021.

The 5 biggest exporters of flours are Türkiye, Kazakhstan, Germany, India and the United States of America. Collectively, that cohort of major suppliers generated 41.4% of flours sold on international markets during 2022.

A granular food powder made via grinding raw grains or roots, flour is a key ingredient in dietary staples such as bread, pastries and stews.

Different types of flours in 2022: Almost three-quarters (73.5%) of globally exported flours was made from wheat or meslin flour, while 14.4% was derived from other cereals (excluding wheat and meslin). Another 10.4% of the overall total is attributable to peas, beans, lentils and other dried leguminous vegetables. Finally, 1.6% was potato-based flour.

From a continent perspective, $4 billion or 46% worth of all flour exports worldwide during 2022 originated in Asia.

In second place were suppliers in Europe (32.2%) trailed by North America (10%), Latin America (6.8%) plus the Caribbean and Africa (5.1%). The smallest continent for generating international flour sales was Oceania via a tiny 0.6% share led by Australia.

For research purposes, the 4-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix is 1101 for wheat or meslin flour, 1102 for other cereal flours, 1106 for flour made from peas, beans, lentils and similar dried leguminous vegetables. The 6-digit HTS prefix is 110510 for potato-derived flour.

Wheat or Meslin Flour Exports by Country:

Below are the 25 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of flour made from wheat or meslin and that was shipped during 2022.

  1. Türkiye: US$1.5 billion (23.3% of exported wheat flour)
  2. Kazakhstan: $753 million (11.7%)
  3. Germany: $504.1 million (7.8%)
  4. India: $276.4 million (4.3%)
  5. Uzbekistan: $268.5 million (4.2%)
  6. Italy: $251.9 million (3.9%)
  7. Argentina: $196.7 million (3.1%)
  8. Canada: $169.3 million (2.6%)
  9. United States: $163.2 million (2.5%)
  10. Russia: $159.5 million (2.5%)
  11. Belgium: $155.5 million (2.4%)
  12. United Kingdom: $137.7 million (2.1%)
  13. France: $116.3 million (1.8%)
  14. Egypt: $115.8 million (1.8%)
  15. Japan: $98.5 million (1.5%)
  16. Vietnam: $95.1 million (1.5%)
  17. Netherlands: $91.2 million (1.4%)
  18. Hungary: $81.2 million (1.3%)
  19. Slovakia: $68.2 million (1.1%)
  20. China: $67.5 million (1%)
  21. Spain: $64.4 million (1%)
  22. Serbia: $60.3 million (0.9%)
  23. Poland: $60.1 million (0.9%)
  24. Dominican Republic: $58 million (0.9%)
  25. South Africa: $42.7 million (0.7%)

By value, the above countries produced over four-fifths (81.8%) of wheat or meslin-based flour in 2022.

Leading international sales gains for this commodity from 2021 to 2022 were suppliers in: Russia (up 85.7%), United Kingdom (up 77%), Slovakia (up 72.2%), Kazakhstan (up 70.8%) and the Dominican Republic (up 67.4%).

Exporters in Egypt endured the greatest decline (-40.8%) year over year, trailed by Uzbekistan (down -4.4%).

Cereals Flour Exports by Country (Not Wheat or Meslin):

Below are the 25 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of flour made from cereals other than wheat or meslin and that was shipped during 2022.

  1. Thailand: US$155.9 million (12.3% of other cereal flour exports)
  2. Mexico: $152.6 million (12%)
  3. United States: $106.1 million (8.4%)
  4. Italy: $79.6 million (6.3%)
  5. Germany: $78.1 million (6.2%)
  6. Zambia: $64.7 million (5.1%)
  7. Belgium: $48.5 million (3.8%)
  8. El Salvador: $46.4 million (3.7%)
  9. France: $44.2 million (3.5%)
  10. Myanmar: $41.2 million (3.3%)
  11. India: $40 million (3.2%)
  12. Canada: $36.8 million (2.9%)
  13. Netherlands: $27.1 million (2.1%)
  14. Brazil: $24.7 million (1.9%)
  15. Colombia: $23.4 million (1.8%)
  16. South Africa: $21.6 million (1.7%)
  17. Spain: $19.4 million (1.5%)
  18. Portugal: $18.8 million (1.5%)
  19. Dominican Republic: $13.2 million (1%)
  20. Poland: $13.1 million (1%)
  21. United Kingdom: $11.7 million (0.9%)
  22. Honduras: $11.6 million (0.9%)
  23. Rwanda: $10.4 million (0.8%)
  24. Vietnam: $10 million (0.8%)
  25. Costa Rica: $10 million (0.8%)

By value the above countries produced 83.3% of cereals-based flour in 2022 (excluding those made from wheat or meslin).

Leading the gainers from 2021 to 2022 were: Zambia (up 15,011%), Myanmar (up 167.8%), Costa Rica (up 101%), Canada (up 63.9%) then India (up 54.3%).

Four major suppliers recorded double-digit declines year over year, namely: Brazil (down -37.7% from 2021), Colombia (down -36.3%), Netherlands (down -18.4%) and Poland (down -16.7%).

Potato Flour Exports by Country:

Below are the 25 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of potato-based flour that was shipped during 2022.

  1. Netherlands: US$93.9 million (65.6% of exported potato-based flours)
  2. United States: $16.7 million (11.7%)
  3. Poland: $9.3 million (6.5%)
  4. Canada: $5.3 million (3.7%)
  5. Belgium: $3.9 million (2.7%)
  6. India: $1.8 million (1.3%)
  7. Germany: $1.5 million (1%)
  8. Egypt: $1 million (0.7%)
  9. United Kingdom: $994,000 (0.7%)
  10. Italy: $930,000 (0.6%)
  11. Thailand: $882,000 (0.6%)
  12. Denmark: $588,000 (0.4%)
  13. Iran: $575,000 (0.4%)
  14. France: $551,000 (0.4%)
  15. Singapore: $528,000 (0.4%)
  16. Malaysia: $420,000 (0.3%)
  17. Slovakia: $281,000 (0.2%)
  18. Vietnam: $272,000 (0.2%)
  19. Indonesia: $246,000 (0.2%)
  20. South Africa: $232,000 (0.2%)
  21. Australia: $216,000 (0.2%)
  22. Hong Kong: $215,000 (0.2%)
  23. South Korea: $205,000 (0.1%)
  24. Ireland: $193,000 (0.1%)
  25. Greece: $179,000 (0.1%)

By value, the above countries produced 96.9% of potato-based flours in 2022.

Strongest gains from 2021 to 2022 were posted by supplies in: Vietnam (up 27,100%), Slovakia (up 1,177%), Denmark (up 420.4%), India (up 327.9%) then Canada (up 130.2%).

France endured the greatest decline (-80.8%) in its year-over-year flour export sales. Other severe drops were experienced by suppliers in Australia (down -64.2% from 2021), South Africa (down -59%), Indonesia (down -40.4%) then the United Kingdom (down -34.9%).

Dried Legumes Flour Exports by Country:

Below are the 25 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of flour made from peas, beans and lentils or other dried legumes and that was shipped during 2022.

  1. India: US$168.4 million (18.4% of dried legumes flour exports)
  2. Spain: $92.4 million (10.1%)
  3. United States: $86.3 million (9.4%)
  4. Thailand: $67.5 million (7.4%)
  5. Canada: $42.5 million (4.6%)
  6. Türkiye: $33.3 million (3.6%)
  7. Germany: $30.3 million (3.3%)
  8. Peru: $27.7 million (3%)
  9. China: $26.9 million (2.9%)
  10. Italy: $26.3 million (2.9%)
  11. Netherlands: $24 million (2.6%)
  12. France: $23.9 million (2.6%)
  13. Indonesia: $22.7 million (2.5%)
  14. Vietnam: $20.5 million (2.2%)
  15. Belgium: $19.7 million (2.1%)
  16. Malaysia: $16.6 million (1.8%)
  17. Denmark: $16.2 million (1.8%)
  18. Brazil: $15.1 million (1.6%)
  19. Singapore: $12.9 million (1.4%)
  20. United Kingdom: $11.5 million (1.3%)
  21. Honduras: $10.1 million (1.1%)
  22. Ecuador: $9.6 million (1%)
  23. Rwanda: $8.6 million (0.9%)
  24. Taiwan: $8.5 million (0.9%)
  25. Chile: $6.8 million (0.7%)

By value, the above countries exported 85.7% of dried legumes-based flours in 2022.

Leading the gainers from 2021 to 2022 were: Honduras (up 114.7%), India (up 73.9%), Thailand (up 61.1%), Denmark (up 58.4%) then Canada (up 37.2%).

The value of exports for dried legumes-based flour fell at the greatest rate for competitors in Rwanda (down -75.6% compared to 2021), Vietnam (down -38.7%), Chile (down -34.8%), Brazil (down -17.5%) and Türkiye (down -14.7%).

Average Unit Prices by Type of Flour

Wheat or meslin flour was the least expensive type of exported flour in 2022, with an average price of $676 per ton.

The second-lowest average price in 2022 was charged for flour made from cereals other than wheat or meslin at $1,174 per ton.

At $3,941 per ton, the most expensive type of exported flour was made from dried leguminous vegetables including peas, beans and lentils.

The smallest category of exported flour in terms of total international sales, potato-based flour, garnered an average unit price of $1,838 per ton during 2022.

See also Wheat Exports by Country, Top Pasta Exporters by Country and Barley Exports by Country

Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Exports – Commodities. Accessed on August 11, 2023

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on August 11, 2023

Wikipedia, Flour. Accessed on August 11, 2023