Saudi Arabia hikes barley subsidy amid flour shortage

Published Wednesday, March 05, 2008

By Agencies

Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest importer of barley, raised subsidies on the grain 71 per cent to wean farmers off wheat flour to which they turned after lower-than-average winter rains hurt pastures.

The government raised the subsidy to $320 per tonne, an agriculture ministry official told Reuters on Wednesday.

Saudi Arabia, a largely desert kingdom, imports around six million tonnes per year of barley, out of global trade of 15 million tonnes, according to the International Grains Council. (Reuters)

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