On April 16-17, 2025, Riga will host the Baltic Grains & Oils Conference, an international conference dedicated to trends in the grain and oilseed markets of the EU, Ukraine and Kazakhstan, as well as the prospects for transshipment of agricultural cargo from Kazakhstan and Ukraine in the European ports of the Baltic Sea.
The Baltic region has traditionally been one of the key links in the global logistics chain. At the same time, the dynamics of cargo turnover at some European ports on the Baltic Sea is currently experiencing a decline, which raises the issue of attracting cargo. For example, in the first three quarters of 2024, the cargo turnover of the port of Riga decreased by 6.8% compared to the same period of the previous year and amounted to 13.1 mln tonnes.
The transit of Ukrainian and Kazakh agricultural cargo can be a good incentive for the development of European Baltic ports. The Baltic ports of Poland and Lithuania are already taking measures to increase efficiency and improve transit transshipment capabilities for agricultural products.
In addition, European countries on the Baltic Sea are active importers of agricultural products. Only 5 European countries on the Baltic Sea coast (Lithuania, Latvia, Finland, Sweden, and Estonia) import an average of USD 32.5 bln annually in agro-products. At the same time, there is an upward trend in this indicator.
The average annual total supply of grains and oilseeds, as well as their processed products from Ukraine and Kazakhstan to these countries in 2022-2023 is estimated at 800 thsd tonnes.
Key topics of the conference:
- Prospects for global agricultural trade
- Global changes in the global agricultural cargo logistics
- Prospects for the development of European ports in the Baltic Sea
- Potential of export and transit cargo flows of agricultural products from Kazakhstan and Ukraine
- Cost and efficiency of land logistics for delivery to the Baltic Sea ports
- Risk management during transshipment in the Baltic Sea ports
- Container transshipment as a promising area for the development of trade in niche agro-commodities.
In addition, the conference will include an excursion to the port of Riga, where participants will be able to familiarize themselves with the port infrastructure and assess the prospects for cooperation.
Geography of participants: Kazakhstan, Ukraine, European countries interested in mutual cooperation in the segment of trade and transit of agricultural products.
We invite exporters and importers of grains, oilseeds, and processed products, as well as logistics, law firms, brokers, industry associations, banks, analytical agencies, and representatives of government organizations to participate.
To register for the Baltic Grains & Oils Conference, please visit APK-Inform website.
