BUENOS AIRES/BEIJING, July 7 (Reuters) - Grains merchant

Bunge has chartered 30,000 metric tons of Argentine soybean meal

cargo destined for China, data seen by Reuters on Monday showed,

which would mark the first such soymeal cargo since Beijing

approved Argentine imports in 2019.

According to data from local maritime agency NABSA,

Bunge will ship the soybean meal from the Terminal 6 facility it

operates with Argentina's AGD in San Lorenzo, north of the farm

hub city of Rosario, where the vessel NORDTAJO is expected to

dock around July 16 to transport the cargo.

Ship tracking data on LSEG Workspace shows the vessel

currently off the west coast of Africa on route to San Lorenzo.

Reuters reported last month that several Chinese animal feed

makers had signed a deal for a maiden soymeal shipment as

China's animal feed industry looks to broaden its supply options

to mitigate potential disruptions from the U.S.-China trade war.

The small initial shipment is seen as test case and could

potentially unlock more such trades in the future.

Argentina is the world's largest exporter of soybean meal.

China, meanwhile, is the world's largest importer of soybeans,

but does not typically buy soybean meal, rather processing the

beans itself to produce the meal it uses as animal feed.

Most of the soybeans imported by China come from Brazil

and the United States, with whom Beijing is currently engaged in

a trade war.

In 2024, Argentina exported a total of 27.2 million tons

of soybean meal, valued at $10.55 billion. Vietnam was the main

destination for shipments, accounting for 15% of the total.