Greece relies on imports for nearly 40% of corn and more than half of wheat needs

Greece remains heavily dependent on grain imports to meet domestic demand, particularly from the livestock and feed industries. In 2025, domestic production covered approximately 62% of the country’s corn requirements and less than half of its wheat needs. This was highlighted by Apostolos Anthomelidis of Nitsiakos during the Grain Academy conference held in Sofia on October 22.

In addition to grains, Greece relies heavily on imported protein ingredients for animal feed production. This supply structure makes the domestic market vulnerable to disruptions in Black Sea trade, transportation bottlenecks and fluctuations in logistics costs. Reliable deliveries from neighboring Balkan countries are particularly important for Greek importers.

According to Anthomelidis, grain buyers in the processing and livestock sectors are increasingly focusing not only on prices but also on product quality, delivery schedules and supplier reliability. For feed manufacturers and livestock producers, shipment delays can threaten production continuity, meaning that waiting for lower prices is not always a viable strategy.

Under these conditions, Greek companies are seeking to diversify import sources, maintain long-term supplier relationships and build sufficient feedstock inventories. However, maintaining larger stocks requires additional working capital, forcing businesses to balance financing costs against the need for reliable supplies.

Developing alternative transport routes, particularly rail connections, remains an important way to improve the reliability of grain imports. However, limited infrastructure capacity and high cross-border logistics costs continue to restrict their use. Amid ongoing uncertainty surrounding Black Sea shipping routes, these factors remain critical to securing Greece’s grain and feed ingredient supplies.

Tags: Greece, corn, wheat