Pressure in the soy processing market continues to squeeze margins for food ingredients companies, pushing up prices for food manufacturers.
Solae announced yesterday that it had raised the price of its soy-based lecithin product portfolio by 5 to 8 per cent.
According to the company, a recently formed venture between Du Pont and Bunge, the leap in price effective from yesterday, is a result of recent escalation in the cost of manufacturing, rising energy costs, and a variety of increases in the cost of ingredients, transportation and packaging.
"We looked at other options to avoid passing on any of these increased costs to our valued customers," said Jack Self, global business lead - lecithin at Solae. "However, external factors made a price increase unavoidable."
A report from the American Soybean Association out this week cited US Census Bureau figures for September soybean crushing at 3.46 million tonnes, a lift from the 3.4 million tonnes reported in August and beating trade expectations.
Tough market conditions in soyoil continue however, with soyoil stocks down more than the trade had expected, to 674,000 tonnes, said the ASA.
The last time soyoil stocks fell in three consecutive years was 50 years ago, added the association. Excellent meal buying last month has been the key factor for the rising margins.
US agri-giants have been feeling the impact of the soyoil figures on their margins. Last week Bunge saw profits slip as the company bore the brunt of weaker soy crops in the US due to drought and reduced yields.