Morocco will reinstate a variable subsidy for soft wheat cargoes loaded between September 16 and December 31, supporting the resumption of imports after a summer pause intended to prioritize the domestic harvest.
The measure, announced by the National Interprofessional Office for Cereals and Legumes, or ONICL, applies according to the date grain is loaded at its port of origin rather than its arrival in Morocco. The official mechanism sets a reference price of 270 dirhams per quintal.
When the average landed cost exceeds that benchmark, the state will compensate importers for the difference. Calculations will consider wheat prices in reference markets including France, Germany, Argentina and the United States, alongside freight, exchange-rate and port-related costs.
Abdelkader Alaoui, president of Morocco’s National Federation of Millers, told Hespress that preliminary estimates place the subsidy at between 15 and 16 dirhams per quintal. The amount is not final and will be recalculated monthly according to international market movements.
A joint committee representing the Finance Ministry, Agriculture Ministry and ONICL will determine the rate applicable each month using data collected during the preceding month. The September average will therefore establish support for cargoes loaded in October, with the process continuing through December.
The program follows a three-month period of import protection beginning in June. Morocco imposed a 170% duty on soft wheat and its derivatives to encourage the sale of domestic grain, later extending the measure through August. Collection of that duty was suspended again from September 1.
Industry figures indicate that only about 6 million quintals of domestic soft wheat have been collected, compared with an initial target of 15 million quintals and annual milling demand of roughly 50 million.
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