Global Sunflower Meal Market - 2022-2029

Market Overview

Sunflower meal is a byproduct made after the extraction of sunflower oil. Many products are available in the market, from straw-like meals to flour. Sunflower meals are made from whole or decorticated seeds and are solvent-extracted. The quality of sunflower meal depends on the plant characteristics like seed composition, hulls/kernel ratio, dehulling potential, growth and storage conditions. Sunflower meal offers protein and fiber to the animals. Russia and Ukraine are the two major producers and exporters of sunflower meals. The EU is also a major importer of sunflower meals. Sunflower meal is ideal for ruminants and monogastric herbivores. The high nutritional aspect of sunflower has led to sunflower meals being the meal of choice for livestock feeds. The growing animal feed industry drives sunflower meal market growth.

The global sunflower meal market was valued at USD YY million in 2021. It is forecasted to reach USD YY million by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 6.12% during the forecast period (2022-2029).

Market Dynamics: The high nutritional value of the sunflower meal and increased consumption benefits awareness drive market growth

Sunflower meal is a rich source of protein. Protein quality and quantity are the primary consideration in animal nutrition for using particular feedstuff. The crude protein value of extracted sunflower meal ranges from 32% to 37%. The protein digestibility of the sunflower meal is around 82%. Sunflower meal is rich in tryptophan, arginine, and especially methionine but low in lysine. Sunflower meal is a rich source of Vitamin A. Sunflower meal is rich in macronutrients essential for animal growth. Sunflower meal protein is more degradable than other seed meals such as soya bean, or rapeseed meal, making it the best contender for animal feed. Apart from the higher bioavailability of protein, sunflower meal is also devoid of any anti-nutritional factors, and hence is considered safe for all species and is not of limited use. Sunflower meal is high in fat content, making it an ideal feed for dairy cows since farmers, more often than not, supplement the fat externally to improve the quality of milk obtained from the cows.

Moreover, the growing livestock industry and animal feed industry support the growth of the sunflower meal market. Global demand for milk, meat, and poultry is increasing to fulfill the demand feed industry is also growing. Sunflower meals play an important role in the feed industry; therefore, the growth of the compound feed market is proportional to the growth of the compound feed industry. As the population of the livestock industry increased, demand for animal feed (sunflower meal) increased.

Market Segmentation: Ruminants segment accounted for the highest share in global sunflower meal market

Sunflower meal is a protein supplement in the ruminant feed. Protein from sunflower meal was equivalent to soybean meal for lactating cows. Sunflower milk helps to increase milk production in lactating animals. Sunflower meal had a more desirable amino acid balance than cows-fed soybean meal. The high oil content sunflower meal is an excellent feed source for ruminants. The high-fat sunflower meal eliminates the need for some or all of the fat supplements requirements. Supply of the high-fat content sunflower meal is limited. Sunflower meal is also well utilized in young calves and growing heifers. Weight gains and feed consumption were similar for calves and heifers fed sunflower or soybean meals.

The sunflower meal pellet segment held the largest market share by form due to its high nutritional value and easy handling. De-hulled sunflower pellets contain 36% crude protein, while sunflower meal with hulls contains 26-28% crude protein. This product is obtained by grinding the residue from oil extraction from the sunflower seed. To facilitate handling and transportation, the meal is pelletized. The color of sunflower meal varies from grey to black and depends on the degree of de-hulling and oil extraction method. Sunflower pellets are rich in Sulphur amino acids and are more degradable than those other oil meals, which readily facilitates microbial synthesis.

Geographical Penetration: Europe is the dominating region during the forecast period

According to oil world data, sunflower meals to Europe exceeded expectations at an estimated 600-650 thousand tons in April-June 2022. Imports from Argentina were boosted to a multi-year high of 230-250 thousand tons in April-June, up 50% from a year earlier. Ukraine and Russia are the world's largest producers of sunflower seeds and exporters of sunflower oil. Most of the European demand for sunflower seeds comes from Bulgaria, the Netherlands, Spain, Germany, Hungary, Romania and France. Bulgaria has a steady and expanding crushing capacity, with domestic production, favorable imports and increasing exports driving investments. In 2021, Bulgaria had a sunflower crushing capacity of nearly 3 million tons, the largest in Europe, while its production of sunflower seeds is around 2 million tons. Bulgaria is currently the leading Europe exporter of sunflower products, including seeds, kernels, chips and oil, to third markets, representing 43% of total Europe exports of sunflower products to non-Europe countries. The Netherlands is Europe's second-largest importer of sunflower seeds, accounting for 15% or a total volume of 489 thousand tons in 2021. According to the Statista data, on October 2022, the sunflower seed meal consumption volume in Russia increased gradually over the period observed. The figures were expected to reach a high of 3.9 million metric tons of sunflower seed meals consumed in the marketing year 2022.

Competitive Landscape:

There are several established participants in the industry and local manufacturers; hence, the market is fragmented. Some major market players are Cargill Inc., Colorado Mills, Bunge, Glencore Agriculture, Kernel, Mironivsky Hilboproduct, Optimus Agro, Vioil Industrial Group, Archer Daniels Midland, and Avril, among others. Some major companies follow merger and acquisition strategies to expand their business. For instance, on December 2021, Cargill Inc. acquired an oil refinery at Kpatnam port with an investment of $ 35 million, including the acquisition and upgradation of the refinery. Also, in July 2019, Kernel acquired an interest in ViOil Holding Ltd, which operates two multi-seed oil extraction plants with a crushing capacity of 1.1M tonnes/year. The ViOil industrial group processes sunflower seed, rapeseed, soybean and flaxseed into oil and meal. It also provides storage and marketing services for oilseeds and grain crops, exporting its products to more than 60 countries, including CIS, EU and Southeast Asian states. Some of the major companies expand their business due to increased product demand. For instance, on May 2022, Avrils expanded sunflower crushing to reduce import dependency. Russia and Europe accounted for about 80% of global exports of sunflower oil. The aim is to become more independent regarding sunflower oil and oilseed meal. The project contributed to the expansion of crops, which is expected to increase surface area by 900,000 ha compared to 2021. This expansion helps to boost surface area by 900,000 ha or 30% compared to 2021.

COVID-19 Impact: Negative impact on the global sunflower meal market

COVID-19 affected the global economy in many ways, directly affecting demand and production, supply chain distraction, and financial impact. The COVID-19 pandemic has directly impacted the manufacturers' supply chain across the globe. The pandemic reduced consumption and demand for sunflower meals, increasing prices and hitting the major seed-producing and oil-exporting countries. Due to the coronavirus disease crisis and the global lockdown measures, unprecedented agri-food systems disruptions and food safety and security disruptions have occurred. The Covid pandemic badly affected agriculture sub-sectors like the sunflower meal feed sector. In March, April and May 2021, there were major disruptions to processing facilities for cattle, hogs and poultry. In response to these disruptions, significant price variations accompanied the disruptions and significant production deviations from the pre-COVID-19 baseline developed. Moreover, production and marketing channel disruption negatively impacted on sunflower meal market.

The global sunflower meal market report would provide an access to approximately 61 market data tables, 51 figures and 170 pages