Taiwan Flour Millers Sign Letter of Intent to Import U.S. Wheat
Taiwan Flour Millers Association (TFMA) Chairman Tony I. T. Chen (center right) and U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) President Vince Peterson (center left) signed a letter of intent by TFMA to purchase a total of 1.8 million metric tons of U.S. wheat in 2018 and 2019 on Sept. 13, 2017, in the Mansfield Room of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. The ceremony is a part of a biennial Agricultural Trade Goodwill Mission to the United States to purchase grains and other agricultural products for the people of Taiwan. Witnesses to the signing include Congressman Roger Marshall of Kansas (left of Vince Peterson), Representative Stanley Kao, Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States and a Republic of China agricultural minister.
“We all look forward to this event and appreciate the long history of mutually beneficial trade relations with the Taiwan milling and wheat foods industries,” said Peterson.
USW, the U.S. Grains Council, the U.S. Soybean Export Council and the North American Export Grain Association honored delegates from TFMA and Taiwan’s feed and oilseed industries at a reception Sept. 12, 2017, in Washington, D.C. The delegates also signed letters of intent to import U.S. corn and soybeans.
Taiwan is on average the sixth largest market for U.S. wheat. TFMA imports wheat on behalf of all 20 Taiwanese flour mills and has imported far more wheat from the United States compared to other origins, at an average of 1.03 million metric tons (37.9 million bushels) per year since marketing year 2011/12 (June to May).
Significant hard red spring (HRS) imports reflect a need for strong gluten flour for breads, rolls and frozen dough products as well as for blending with hard red winter to make traditional Chinese flour foods and noodles. Year-to-date sales of HRS to Taiwan in marketing year 2017/18 are up 93 percent from 2016/17. Soft white (SW) wheat imports, including Western White wheat (a blend of SW and up to 20 percent club), help meet growing demand for cake, cookie and pastry flours.
Chairman Chen and other TFMA delegates will also visit North Dakota, Montana and Idaho to make similar commitments and to meet with state wheat commission representatives and state government officials.
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About U.S. Wheat Associates
USW’s mission is to “develop, maintain, and expand international markets to enhance the profitability of U.S. wheat producers and their customers.” Its activities are made possible by producer checkoff dollars managed by 18 state wheat commissions and through USDA Foreign Agricultural Service cost-share funding. For more information, visit www.uswheat.org or contact your state wheat commission.
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