Demand drives soybean imports

Soybean imports are likely to rise to a new high in the 2013-14 market year (September 2013 to August 2014) following a drop in domestic output and greater demand for animal feed and edible oil.

Heilongjiang province in Northeast China, the nation's largest soybean producer, endured heavy rain and flooding over the past four months.

There are more than 235 million hectares of soybean farmland, which had an output of 4.64 million metric tons in 2012, according to Heilongjiang's agriculture commission.