The International Grains Council (IGC) is an intergovernmental organisation that oversees the Grains Trade Convention of 1995 and seeks to promote cooperation in global grains trade. Its mission is to improve market stability and world food security by providing impartial analyses of supply and demand in the grain and oilseed sectors.
The Organisation was established in 1949 as the International Wheat Council, while the current name was adopted in 1995.
Headquartered in London, the IGC hosts the annual Grains Conference that brings together international buyers and sellers, as well as industry and government representatives.
The definition of “grains” was formally expanded to include rice (1 July 2009) and oilseeds (1 July 2013).
Members
As of April 2020, its members include 11 producing and 19 importing countries:
– exporting Member States include Argentina, Australia, Canada, European Union, India, Kazakhstan, Russian Federation, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine, United States of America;
– importing Member States include Algeria, Ivory Coast, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Kenya, South Korea, Morocco, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Switzerland, Tunisia, Vatican City, Senegal.
Mandate
The International Grains Council (IGC) is an intergovernmental organisation that aims to:
– promote international cooperation in the grains trade;
– promote expansion, participation and equity in the grains sector;
– contribute to grains market stability and improve world food security.
These objectives are pursued by improving market transparency through information sharing, analysis and dialogue on market and related policy developments.
Market conditions for cereals, rice and oilseeds are monitored on a daily basis through the dissemination of daily reports and the maintenance of web-based information services.
Bearing this in mind, the annual IGC Grains Conference was established: a public discussion forum that provides an opportunity to bring together international buyers and sellers with industry and government representatives.
Market information on cereals, rice and oilseeds is available on the Organisation’s website by subscription. In particular, the IGC’s Grains and Oilseeds Index (GOI) is shared daily on the website, along with the state of supply and demand and flow forecasts for different countries and commodities. More detailed comments, analyses and market statistics are also published on a weekly or monthly basis.
Furthermore, the IGC provides its Member States’ governments with daily export price quotations, market reports and access to its extensive databases.
In October 2012, the IGC joined the Secretariat of the Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS). The initiative was endorsed by the G20 Agriculture Ministers.
The Organisation’s activity covers four crops (wheat, maize, rice and soya) and aims to promote food market transparency and the coordination of policy actions in response to market uncertainty.
The IGC holds two regular Council sessions each year, either in London or, by invitation, in Member States. The Council’s functions are the following:
– to oversee the implementation of the Grains Trade Convention of 1995;
to discuss current and future developments in the grains market;
– to monitor changes in national grains policies and their implications for the market.
Organisational structure
The IGC has a simple structure with three basic components: the Council of Members, the Committees, the President of the Organisation and the vice-President.
Each Council’s Member State is designated as an importer or exporter on the basis of its trade position in the cereals, rice and oilseed market. The President and vice-President are elected annually and positions alternate between exporting and importing members.
The IGC’s Committees include the Committee on Market Conditions, the Administrative Committee, the Budget Committee, the Executive Committee and the Committee on Food Assistance.