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(NAFB) – The USDA says American sorghum exports during the week ending on April ninth totaled a record-breaking 33.9 million bushels.

That tops the previous record by more than 10 million bushels, a mark set in August 2020. In addition to the record-breaking exports, new sales commitments hit 33.8 million bushels, most of which got purchased by China.

“Sorghum exports continue to show a strong demand for our crop, and new purchases at this level only reaffirm that,” says National Sorghum Producers CEO Tim Lust. “The size of shipments reported this last week is equivalent to the size of approximately 10-12 Panamax vessels.”

New crop purchases of U.S. sorghum at this point in the marketing year are also at a record level, reaching 40 million bushels during the week ending April ninth. That’s a 264 percent increase from the previous record set in 2014.

“This is the strongest new crop demand we have ever seen at this time of the season,” says Lust. “Availability is so scarce that the sorghum crop being planted now is being marketed at the same time.”

He says this sends a strong demand signal to U.S. sorghum producers from their international customers.