Sunflower

An oilseed of the Black Sea steppe; Russia and Ukraine grow more than half the world's sunflower seed.

Oilseeds & oils · No. 94

• Not on a critical list
• HHI 1,684 · moderately concentrated

Two countries at war grow over half the world's sunflower seed, so a closed Black Sea port reaches Indian kitchens.

Chart: Illustration: Sunflower

Where it comes from

Chart: Map of where it comes from

Native to North America, the sunflower became a field crop in Russia. Its deep roots handle dry summers on the black-earth steppe. World output was 52.2 Mt in 2024.

Three things to know

1. Russia and Ukraine grew 53.9% of the world's sunflower seed in 2024, most of the growth coming after 2000.
2. Sunflower oil hit its ten-year high of $2,361/t after Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine closed Black Sea ports.
3. In 1967 the USSR paid for Iranian gas partly in sunflower oil, pushing out US soybean oil.

The journey

1. 1 SteppeGrown on dry black-earth farmland
2. 2 HarvestSeed heads harvested and dried
3. 3 CrushingCrushed near the farm or port
4. 4 Oil and mealCrude oil plus fibrous meal
5. 5 End usesCooking oil, margarine and livestock feed

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