OnePress
Some 67,000 tonnes of wheat are due to be loaded in France in the coming days, bound for Sudan, in the first shipment of French wheat to the country in 18 years, according to data from the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG).
The bulk carrier was due to start loading the cargo on Wednesday at the northern French port of Rouen and to complete its cargo next week at the port of Dunkirk, which is also one of the ports in the north of the country, the data showed.
France, the EU’s top wheat producer, has not exported wheat to Sudan since August 2008, according to European Commission data.
The shipment comes at a time when traders in grain markets are watching whether Sudanese importers will look for alternative sources of Russian and Ukrainian wheat, amid the severe disruption to the grain trade in the Black Sea region, following the escalation of attacks on ports and ships in light of the war between Russia and Ukraine.
It was not immediately clear whether the French cargo represented an alternative to Russian or Ukrainian wheat supplies, the report said, citing market participants.
Central Bank of Sudan data indicate that Russia was by far the largest supplier of wheat to Sudan; Russian wheat imports during the first half of 2026 amounted to $341 million, out of a total wheat imports of $381 million.
According to Central Bank data, Sudan imported about 1.3 million tons of wheat during the same period.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture expects Sudan’s annual wheat imports to reach about 2.8 million tons during the 2026/2027 season, continuing the increase in import demand that has started since the outbreak of war in Sudan in 2023.