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Dependable People: A Spotlight on the Ohio Small Grains Checkoff

For 40 years, U.S. wheat farmers have supported U.S. Wheat Associates’ (USW) efforts to work directly with buyers and promote their six classes of wheat. Their contributions to state wheat commissions, who in turn contribute a portion of those funds to USW, qualifies USW to apply for export market development funds managed by USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. Currently, 17 state wheat commissions are USW members and this series highlights those partnerships and the work being done state-by-state to provide unmatched service. Behind the world’s most reliable supply of wheat are the world’s most dependable people – and that includes our state wheat commissions.

Member: Ohio Small Grains Checkoff
USW Member since 2010

Location: Delaware, Ohio
Classes of wheat grown: Soft Red Winter
USW Leadership: Doug Goyings, 2019/20 Chairman

The Ohio Small Grains Checkoff identifies opportunities to add value to Ohio’s small grains crops, including wheat, barley, rye and oats. Checkoff programs focus on exports, water quality, research, education and promotion, domestic demand and consumer outreach. We base our work on the belief that exports are vital for Ohio’s farmers and the state’s economic development.

2018/19 Chairman Chris Kolstad from Montana (R) passes the gavel to 2019/20 Chairman Doug Goyings from Ohio.

Why is export market development important to Ohio wheat farmers and why do they continue to support USW and its activities?

Ohio farmers value overseas markets for grain. We produce a quality product that is affordable and meets the demand from a growing world. We must continue developing relationships with overseas buyers and U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) helps to accomplish that task for Ohio farmers.

Ohio is a soft red winter (SRW) wheat state. The nature of SRW is ideal for baking pastries, cookies, crackers and soft breads. With Mexico’s demand for SRW, with Brazil being another huge market, Ohio’s production is very important to our overall export strength for this commodity.

A trade delegation from Brazil visiting Stover Farm in Shelby, Ohio in 2019.

How have Ohio wheat farmers recently connected with overseas customers?

From hosting international trade missions on Ohio farms, to participating in foreign trade missions, Ohio farmers continue to help build relationships that will lead to open and honest communication with potential buyers of our wheat. USW is one of our most critical partners in these efforts – connecting our growers with the consumers they serve around the globe.

Most recently, Mexico’s third largest wheat milling operation sourced equivalents to rail car units from Ohio. We stand ready to support the international demand, especially to our closest neighbors.

What’s happening lately in Ohio that overseas customers should know about?

  • The Ohio Small Grains Checkoff is organizing an “Ohio Wheat Profitability Summit”. The goal is to increase planted acres by sharing research and practices that drive profit for SRW.
  • Ohio’s wheat farmers are on the front lines in addressing water quality issues in Ohio and the Great Lakes region. We believe our growers, and our products, provide tremendous value to efforts to reduce nutrient loading into the lakes. Our growers are actively supporting the H2Ohio effort which is driving higher adoption of best management practices on our fields.
  • Ohio Small Grains staff and board members are participating in the Wheat Quality Council’s meetings in Wooster, Ohio, with the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Soft Wheat Quality Laboratory. The Ohio delegation will network with researchers, millers, and bakers during the event. In addition, they will provide a session to discuss challenges in Ohio wheat production.

Learn more about Ohio Small Grains Checkoff  on its website here and on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Several Ohio wheat farmers at the 2020 Wheat 104 reception during the USW-NAWG Joint Winter Board Meeting in Washington, D.C.

USW technical staff at USDA-ARS Soft Wheat Quality Laboratory in 2016.

In 2017, Ohio wheat farmer Rachael Vonderhaar traveled with USW on a board delegation tour to Haiti, Mexico, Chile and Ecuador.

2019/20 Chairman Doug Goyings welcomes attendees to the 2019 USW Japan Buyers Conference.

 

 

 

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An Inside Look at IGP’s Flour Milling Short Course for Commissioners

The IGP Institute serves Kansas and U.S. agriculture through its global education center housed in the Grain Science Complex on the Kansas State University campus in Manhattan. Its mission is to provide technical, research-based training benefiting industry professionals globally and enhancing the market preference for U.S. grains and oilseeds. The emphasis is on educational and technical programs supporting promotion and export market development efforts.

From Feb. 25 to 27, 2020, four colleagues from U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) participated in an IGP short course on flour milling for wheat commissioners (farmers and grain trade representatives who serve on the boards of state wheat commissions) and staff.  IGP tries to hold this course annually to educate members of the U.S. wheat industry in the basic principles of flour milling through classroom lecture and hands-on practical training in the Kansas State University milling and baking laboratories and the Hal Ross Flour Mill.

Here is an inside look at this fun and very enlightening course that has built, and will continue to build, greater empathy for and connections with overseas flour milling and wheat food processors among U.S. wheat farmers and grain traders.

Participants in the 2020 milling short course were (left to right around the table): Mark Fowler, Vice President of Global Technical Services, USW , and co-instructor; Amanda Hoey, Chief Executive Officer, Oregon Wheat Commission, Portland, Ore.; Nathan Larson, a wheat farmer and Kansas Wheat Commissioner, Manhattan, Kan., ; Lance Adams, Merchandising Manager, Team Marketing Alliance, Moundridge, Kan.; Steve Mercer, Vice President of Communications, USW; Jason Middleton, Oregon Wheat Commissioner and PNW Regional Manager, United Grain Corp., Umatilla, Ore.; Dana Tuckness, a wheat farmer and Oregon Wheat Commissioner, Ontario, Ore.; Shelby Knisley, Director of Policy, USW; Scott Yates, Director of Communications and Membership, Washington Grain Commission, Spokane, Wash.; Claire Hutchins, Market Analyst, USW; Brian Cochrane, a wheat farmer and Washington Grain Commissioner, Kahlotus, Wash.; Aaron Harries, Vice President of Research and Operations, Kansas Wheat, Manhattan, Kan.; Shawn Thiele, Interim Associate Director/Flour Milling and Grain Processing Curriculum Manager, IGP Institute, and co-instructor.

 

 

Mark Fowler counsels his colleagues Shelbi Knisley and Claire Hutchins on adjusting laboratory mills in K-State’s Shellenberger Hall in a section of the course demonstrating basic milling processes. Hutchins is adjusting the break roll gap on the lab mill.

 

Measuring and adjusting “Break Release” to balance the milling system is a basic skill for flour millers. Here in the Hal Ross Flour Mill, Shawn Thiele explains how weighing stock from 1st break rolls, sifting and comparing the weight of the resulting flour (“through material”) measures the percentage of break stock released.

 

Comparing particle size and color of “through” material from the break, purification and reduction systems clearly show the fine-tuned effort at each step in the milling process to extract as much usable flour as possible from cleaned and tempered wheat stock.

 

Participants in the short course learned about the wide range of flour qualities and byproducts produced in the milling process. This sample table was prepared for course participants by students at K-State working toward bachelor’s degrees in milling science and management.

 

One wheat does not fit all. Preparing and baking sugar snap cookies (biscuits), yellow cakes and pan breads using different flour products helped the course participants better understand flour functionality and the crucial wheat quality component for end-product processors around the world. Aaron Clanton, left, Bakers National Education Foundation (BNEF) Instructor at K-State, and several Bakery Science students led the participants through an enjoyable morning in the K-State bakery lab.

 

 

 

 

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Meet the USW Technical Experts: Dr. Ting Liu – Opening Doors in a Naturally Winning Way

Name: Ting Liu, Ph.D

Title: Technical Specialist

Office: USW China, Hong Kong Region, Beijing Office

Providing Service to: People’s Republic of China

Where and who we come from makes so much difference in each life. For Dr. Ting Liu, the skills she observed in her family as an only child in southeastern China’s Zhejiang province led directly to a doctorate in food science and her position as Technical Specialist with U.S. Wheat Associates (USW).

“I grew up with parents who produced and sold all kinds of furniture in our town, so they showed me how to stay in harmony with customers,” Dr. Liu said. “My love of food started as I watched my grandmother form dough for the many different Chinese wheat foods she made and sometimes helped me make.”

Ting as a child with her grandmother.

Filled with the traditions of her grandmother’s baking and a focus on schoolwork, Dr. Liu earned a spot in the Food Science and Engineering program at Zhejiang Gongshang University. Learning professional skills and participating in efforts to develop new products, including nutritious drinks and snacks, as she earned her bachelor’s degree, helped convince her that she should focus on food research and development.

“In order to build more food knowledge, improve my competitiveness and broaden my horizons, I decided to do graduate study in food science abroad,” Dr. Liu said.

U.S. Connections

She chose the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, because it served a large agricultural state home to the headquarters of many large-sized food companies, such as Cargill and General Mills. Ultimately, her connections there helped lay the foundation of her work today representing U.S. wheat farmers in China.

“I decided to do my post-graduate research on whole wheat products because of my childhood memories and my understanding of the health benefits of whole grains,” Dr. Liu recalled. “That is how I met a very important advisor in my life, whose name is Dr. Len Marquart. Under his guidance during my doctoral study, I improved my English writing and communication skills, my ability to think independently, solve problems, and how to develop professional networks of influential people. He also made it possible for me to do my research as a visiting scholar at the Wheat Marketing Center (WMC) in Portland, Oregon, from June 2014 to January 2016.”

Ting (Third from the right, first row) with Wheat Marketing Center (WMC) Staff and USW China End Product Collaborative Team in 2015 at WMC.

Dr. Liu’s work at WMC was productive and transformative. Working with Dr. Marquart and former WMC Technical Director Dr. Gary Hou, she completed three research projects on improving the quality of whole wheat tortillas using different particle sizes of flour milled from U.S. hard red winter (HRW), hard red spring (HRS), and hard white wheat, sprouted whole wheat flour and a chemical leavening system. Through this research, Dr. Liu published six peer-reviewed technical papers and one book chapter in English on whole wheat products. She presented research results at the annual meetings of the American Association of Cereal Chemists (AACC) International and the Institute of Food Technologists. She was also actively involved in the AACC International Milling & Baking Division.

Dr. Liu said working at WMC exposed her to flour milling and wheat and flour quality analysis. She also helped prepare short courses and workshops on wheat products, prepared a range of wheat food products, and completed a research project on pan bread with added whey permeate. Much of that work was done under WMC’s educational partnership with USW.

Understanding the Mission

“One of my favorite things about working at WMC was helping host teams of wheat growers and students from all over the United States, as well as U.S. wheat customers from all over the world,” Dr. Liu said. “In 2015, I had the chance to meet the people working with USW in China when they brought three teams to WMC for different programs. This helped me better understand the USW mission and ignited my interest in joining the USW team in China.”

Ting graduated and obtained a Ph.D. in Food Science from the University of Minnesota in 2016.

Fortunately, as Dr. Liu completed her doctorate program in August 2016, a technical position was available in the USW Beijing office.

“Dr. Marquart believed I would be well-suited to a job serving as a liaison between U.S. farmers, their wheat, and the milling and wheat food industries in China,” Dr. Liu recalled. “During my job interview, USW Regional Vice President Jeff Coey told me the greatest asset of USW lies in its people who are truly good at what they do, are eager to share their knowledge with their teammates and customers, and tend to devote many years to the organization. I took the job as Technical Specialist without hesitation.”

“Ting already had a keen understanding of our mission from her work at the Wheat Marketing Center, and it was apparent right away that she would bring a tremendous value to our team and to our customers in China,” Coey said.

The need for additional wheat classes in China was increasing as Dr. Liu settled into her new position with USW in September 2016. According to IBIS World Industry Report, China’s bread and bakery product manufacturing industry grew rapidly at an annualized rate of 6.6 percent between 2013 and 2018. And until the government implemented retaliatory tariffs in March 2018, China was importing an annual average of 1.6 million metric tons of U.S. HRS, soft white, and HRW.

With that growth comes an opportunity for USW and Dr. Liu. USW continues to have a strong working relationship with the leaders and faculty at the Sino-American Baking School in Guangzhou and baking consultants to help China’s flour millers and wheat food processors better understand how to best utilize the characteristics of U.S. wheat classes to help grow their businesses. Under the guidance of Coey, USW Country Director Shirley Lu, Dr. Liu has taken on more and more of those responsibilities.

Ting conducted a Frozen Dough short course at Sino-American Baking School in 2019.

“Our team has great confidence in providing technical service that customers need to meet new consumer demand using U.S. wheat,” Lu said. “Ting has the expertise, language ability, nice personality, and high sense of responsibility that fit perfectly in the organization and our unique markets.”

It is clear that customers in China consider Dr. Liu a valued addition to USW’s service. They appreciate her undeniable professional credentials and achievements, but above all, they enjoy her sincere, friendly personality.

“Dr. Liu is very keen to use her professional expertise to solve practical problems in our technology research and development,” said one general manager of a flour mill in Guangdong province. “We want to express our heartfelt thanks to her and to U.S. Wheat Associates.”

Dr. Liu made a strong impression on the research and development manager at a very influential wheat buying and flour milling organization in China. She noted that Dr. Liu “takes the initiative to determine the technical needs of our company and provides cutting-edge information to solve problems and help the company. She always teaches complex knowledge with concise language and a sweet voice.”

Continuing Education

In her own generous way, Dr. Liu said USW has made it possible for her to get the best training and exposure to real-world milling and baking challenges as part of her work.

In 2018, USW sent Dr. Liu to a Baking Science and Technology course at AIB International in Manhattan, Kan., an intensive, 16-week program combining science, hands-on lab work, and baking tradition. She represented herself and USW with distinction, earning top student honors and an “Excellence in Laboratory Leadership” award for her participation in the course.

Ting completed the Baking Science and Technology (BST) Course at AIB International in Manhattan, Kansas, in 2018.

“I was also able to assist in the USW Baking Science and Technology, Cookie & Cracker, Frozen Dough, and Advanced Prepared Mix courses developed by our Bakery Consultant Roy Chung at the UFM Baking School in Bangkok, Thailand,” Dr. Liu said. “There is no doubt Mr. Roy is a master of baking and teaching and is very nice to share his technical service expertise and experience with me. Moreover, our Regional Technical Director, Mr. Peter Lloyd, has also provided tremendously valuable guidelines on troubleshooting and solving challenges in flour mills.”

Ting (First from the left, first row) assisted in Mr. Roy Chung’s Advanced Prepared Mix Technology Course in 2019.

Her enthusiastic accounting of the training she has received, and the wide range of technical support she provides make it clear Dr. Liu loves the work she does on behalf of U.S. wheat farmers.

“By visiting and providing technical services to customers, we can better understand customer needs and reflect these requirements to U.S. wheat farmers,” she noted. “At the same time, we can enhance our customers’ effective processing of U.S. wheat flour and how its functional attributes perform for the baker.

“In addition, the seminars and short courses I have conducted can help current and potential customers further understand the characteristics of U.S. wheat and flour, the flour milling process, testing methods, and ways to adjust formulas and processes according to flour specifications. This is of direct benefit to U.S. wheat growers by promoting their wheat to customers in international markets.”

Ting and her bread while attending a BST course at AIB International in 2018.

An Excellent Bridge

In fact, after one recent USW Crop Quality Seminar and a special technical session attended by top Chinese flour mills and food processors, a food company executive commended Dr. Liu’s professional analysis and insight on the supply, quality, and application of U.S. wheat classes.

“She was clear and confident in her presentations and is a knowledgeable expert. I believe she will be an excellent bridge between U.S. Wheat Associates and customers.”

Even in the face of challenging political realities and complex commercial dynamics, private and public customers in China continue to seek information and advice from USW.

“No customer is compelled to work with USW,” Jeff Coey said. “The fact that they choose to accept our service and the products we promote is a testament to everyone on our team,” Jeff Coey said. “Ting complements our ability to earn that trust, understand the constraints, and grasp the opportunities in this market for U.S. wheat. She has a naturally winning way of opening doors for us wherever she goes.”

By Steve Mercer, USW Vice President of Communications

Editor’s Note: This is the seventh in a series of posts profiling U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) technical experts in flour milling and wheat foods production. USW Vice President of Global Technical Services Mark Fowler says technical support to overseas customers is an essential part of export market development for U.S. wheat. “Technical support adds differential value to the reliable supply of U.S. wheat,” Fowler says. “Our customers must constantly improve their products in an increasingly competitive environment. We can help them compete by demonstrating the advantages of using the right U.S. wheat class or blend of classes to produce the wide variety of wheat-based foods the world’s consumers demand.”

Header Photo Caption: Ting presented “International Whole Grain Development” at the 2017 Sino-Foreign Whole Grains Industry Development Experts Forum.

Meet the other USW Technical Experts in this blog series:

Shin Hak “David” Oh – Expertise Fermented in Korean Food Culture
Tarik Gahi – ‘For a Piece of Bread, Son’
Gerry Mendoza – Born to Teach and Share His Love for Baking
Marcelo Mitre – A Love of Food and Technology that Bakes in Value and Loyalty
Peter Lloyd – International Man of Milling
Ivan Goh – An Energetic Individual Born to the Food Industry
 Adrian Redondo – Inspired to Help by Hard Work and a Hero
Andrés Saturno – A Family Legacy of Milling Innovation
Wei-lin Chou – Finding Harmony in the Wheat Industry

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Wheat Industry News

Recent news and highlights from around the wheat industry.

Speaking of Wheat: “A lot of times, when there are issues that are important to us, the other side is very politically active. They’re there, they’re protesting and they’re making their voices heard. We need to make our voices heard as well.” – Fairfield, Wash., wheat farmer Marci Green, upon receiving an Excellence in Agriculture award Feb. 5. 2020.

UK Scientists Identify High Fiber Wheat Genes. “Farming UK” reported recently that an international group of scientists led by Rothamsted Research and the John Innes Centre have opened the door to high fiber white flour with as much as twice the fiber of traditional white flour. By looking for sections of genetic code shared by plants with the high fiber trait, the team homed in on the likely spots where high fiber genes reside. The researchers are hopeful high fiber wheat varieties can be commercially available within five years now that breeders have a new tool with which to screen wheat lines. Read more here.

Space Cookies! Recently, a batch of chocolate chip cookies (or biscuits) — the first food ever baked in space — returned to Earth aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule. The cookies started out from the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel chain as Earth-made dough, which launched to the International Space Station along with the Zero G oven (the first oven designed to work in space) in November 2019. The recipe for space cookies: bake at 325°F (167°C) for 130 minutes! Read and see more here.

Grains Important in Infant Diets. Sosland Publishing recently reported on a new study published in Nutrients, a peer-reviewed medical journal of human nutrition, highlights the importance of grains as part of a healthy infant diet — and the potential risks of excluding them. “This study is the first to examine grain consumption patterns among U.S. infants … and clearly provides evidence for what organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the CDC, have been suggesting for decades: grains support the backbone of a healthy infant diet,” said study author Yanni Papanikolaou, of Nutritional Strategies Inc. Read the study in Nutrients can be found here.

IGP Institute Milling Courses. The IGP Institute in Manhattan, Kan., has announced a series of milling courses in its upcoming summer schedule, including two  Buhler-KSU Executive Milling courses (one in English and on in Spanish), as well as a IAOM-KSU Introduction to Flour Milling course. Click here to register and for more information on these courses.

Subscribe to USW Reports. USW publishes a variety of reports and content that are available to subscribe to, including a bi-weekly newsletter highlighting recent Wheat Letter blog posts, the weekly Price Report and the weekly Harvest Report (available May to October). Subscribe here.

Follow USW Online. Visit our page at https://www.facebook.com/uswheat for the latest updates, photos and discussions of what is going on in the world of wheat. Also, find breaking news on Twitter at https://twitter.com/uswheatassoc and video stories on Vimeo at https://vimeo.com/uswheatassociates.

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Nisshin Flour Milling Inc. Congratulates U.S. Wheat Associates on 40 Years

Behind the world’s most reliable supply of wheat are the world’s most dependable people. Those people, from U.S. Wheat Associates staff to the state wheat commissions and U.S. wheat farm families to the many hands along the U.S. supply chain, and finally our overseas customers – are all a part of our story. Despite the different roles or distances between us, all of the people in our story share an unspoken connection, not only through U.S. wheat but through our shared values of growth, hard work and family. We appreciate the many congratulatory messages and well wishes from our friends and customers from all over the world.

Message from Nisshin Flour Milling Inc.

“Congratulations on the 40th anniversary for the establishment of USW (U.S. Wheat Associates). For the Japanese flour millers including us, stable supply of U.S. wheat to our market is crucial. We appreciate the great contribution of USW playing the role of providing a bridge between U.S. wheat producers and Japanese flour millers for many years.

In order to provide high quality wheat flour to our customers, it is very important for us to have better understanding of wheat crop quality each year, for which USW has given us timely information on crop progress and quality, and opportunities to visit wheat fields and producers for face to face discussion in harvest season.

Such a crop survey at the field enables us to deepen our understanding of not only the crop quality, but also the actual situation of the crop production and distribution in the U.S. market. And by return, we can provide the producers with our customer and consumer needs of which kind and type of wheat the end users are looking for in Japan.

We believe the demand of U.S. wheat would grow even more in the Japanese market as long as we keep supplying good quality wheat flour to our end users. We would appreciate USW‘s continuous assistance for purchasing  high quality U.S. wheat. We would like to continue our long-term partnership for further development in the future.”

Visiting Darren Padget’s farm in Oregon.

Visiting Darren Padget’s farm in Oregon.

Meeting in Washington.

 

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Supply, Quality and Price Support USDA Wheat Export Estimates

By USW Market Analyst Claire Hutchins

Between January and February 2020, USDA raised its total U.S. wheat export estimate from 26.5 million metric tons (MMT) to 27.2 MMT, 7% greater than last year, if realized. U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) believes the United States is on track to reach USDA’s export estimates due to favorable marketing trends in the first half of 2019/20 that led to a strong export pace between June 2019 and February 2020.

U.S. wheat farmers continue to produce an abundant supply of high-quality wheat, which is always a factor in overseas demand. Export prices have certainly attracted customers’ attention in marketing year 2019/20. And if they compare current price trends to what has happened at this time of year on average the past five years, customers can also see an unusual buying opportunity.

HRW. USDA expects 2019/20 HRW exports will reach 10.6 MMT, 18 percent greater than last year, if realized. Relatively low HRW prices during the first half of 2019/20 boosted HRW exports into early 2020. Between early June 2019 and late December 2020, the average Gulf HRW 11.5% protein (on a 12% moisture basis) FOB price trended about 7 percent below the 5-year average price. As of Feb 13. 2020, HRW exports to all destinations total 6.44 MMT, 33 percent greater than this time last year and 61 percent of USDA’s 2019/20 forecast. HRW prices climbed between late August and early January but have fallen back 4 percent between to $226/MT FOB, offering a price incentive for the final months of the marketing year.

HRS. USDA forecasts 2019/20 HRS exports will reach 7.48 MMT, 6 percent greater than last year, if realized. As of Feb 13. 2020, HRS exports to all destinations total 4.62 MMT, slightly below last year and 62 percent of USDA’s 2019/20 forecast. Gulf HRS 14% protein prices trended dramatically below 2018 values and the 5-year average price between early June and late September, until concerns of a wet harvest brought prices more in line with 2018 levels at about $270/MT. However, HRS prices are trending down in the second half of 2019/20 and are, on average, 5 percent lower than the 5-year average FOB trendline at about $264/MT. Industry experts believe HRS FOB prices could continue their downward trend on cheaper nearby secondary rail rates and light export demand, beneficial for deliveries in April and May 2020.

SRW. USDA predicts SRW exports will total 2.72 MMT, 22 percent lower than last year, if realized. USW reported Feb. 5, soft red winter (SRW) export prices had been climbing steadily since the end of the 2019 harvest on reduced production, tight ending stocks and stable domestic and overseas demand. However, after Jan. 24, a dip in export demand pressured prices, offering an opportunity for SRW importers to lock in a lower price through the end of marketing year 2019/20. Between Jan. 24 and Feb.14, 2020, SRW prices fell 6 percent to $247/MT FOB. Despite reduced production and higher than average prices, SRW exports to date are in line with this time last year at 1.83 MMT, 67 percent of USDA’s final forecast.

White wheat (soft and hard). USDA predicts 2019/20 white wheat exports will total 5.31 MMT, in line with last year and 15 percent greater than the 5-year average of 4.60 MMT. For the majority of the first half of 2019/20, soft white (SW) wheat (representing 99 percent of U.S. white wheat production) 10.5% maximum protein prices trended well below the last year’s price and the 5-year average price over the same time period, providing overseas customers with ideal white wheat buying opportunities. As of Feb. 14, the SW 10.5% protein maximum FOB price was $237/MT, 2 percent lower than this time last year and 5 percent below the 5-year average. As of Feb. 13, 2020, all white wheat exports total 3.56 MMT, 3 percent greater than last year and 67 percent of USDA’s final white wheat export forecast.

Durum. USDA predicts 2019/20 U.S. durum exports will total 1.10 MMT, 83 percent greater than last year and 54 percent greater than the 5-year average. Durum exports to Italy, the largest market for U.S. durum, are more than double what they were this time last year at 439,000 metric tons (MT) due to a 12 percent reduction in European Union (EU) durum production in 2019. Year-to-date U.S. durum exports now total 655,000 MT, nearly double last year’s export pace and 60 percent of USDA total 2019/20 durum export forecast.

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The United States and Kenya Launch Trade Talks, Agree to Lift PNW Wheat Barrier

By Shelbi Knisley, USW Director of Trade Policy

U.S. wheat producers welcomed recent news that Kenya lifted a trade barrier on some U.S. grown wheat and agreed at the same time to initiate talks on a Free Trade Agreement (FTA). An FTA with Kenya could provide more favorable tariff and sanitary-phytosanitary (SPS) provisions for U.S. wheat in a market that annually imports around 2.0 million metric tons (MMT). The U.S. Trade Representative’s announcement to launch this discussion with Kenya is mandated under the renewal of the 2015 African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).

The U.S.- Kenya Trade and Investment Working Group adopted a phytosanitary protocol for Kenya that would allow U.S. wheat growers in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) access to Kenya’s wheat market for the first time in over a decade. Historically Kenya has maintained a non-scientific SPS barrier against U.S. wheat from this region due to concerns about the potential presence of a plant disease known as Flag Smut. Kenya’s ban has also impacted U.S. wheat exports to Uganda, but not because that country bans Flag Smut. Uganda is a land-locked country therefore uses Kenya’s port facilities, which forces them to abide by Kenya’s import requirements.

Kenya’s domestic wheat production only meets around 10 percent of its annual demand. Even as Kenya maintains a 10 percent import tariff on wheat from all origins, they typically remain a price-sensitive buyer. The country sources much of its wheat import volume from nearby suppliers—Russia, Ukraine and the EU—which often has a price and freight advantage over PNW wheat supplies. That combination of obstacles puts the key to expanding U.S. wheat market share in an FTA that would resolve remaining SPS issues and provide a tariff advantage to U.S. wheat. This would allow Kenyan flour millers access to quality U.S. wheat supplies at a lower cost. The United States currently supplies around 5 percent of this market, or about 120,000 MT per year.

U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) believes announcement to launch negotiations with Kenya is a step in the right direction that has the potential to serve as a model for trade negotiations with other African countries to follow.

Learn more about other trade negotiations and issues crucial to overseas demand for U.S. wheat here.

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U.S. Wheat Farmers and Their Overseas Customers Share Unique Connections

Behind the world’s most reliable supply of wheat are the world’s most dependable people. Those people, from U.S. Wheat Associates staff to the state wheat commissions and U.S. wheat farm families to the many hands along the U.S. supply chain, represent an industry that is always changing. But many of the overseas customers USW works with overseas can also say the same. Despite the different roles or distances between us, all of the people in our story share an unspoken connection, not only through U.S. wheat but through our shared values of growth, hard work and family.

These connections are a part of our story.

RANDY SUESS
Retired Washington Wheat Farmer, 2011/12 USW Chairman

“I had the opportunity of a lifetime to travel with USW to many countries and visit with buyers, millers and bakers. My thanks to those who made us feel so welcome. The millers are most gracious hosts and always showed up in large numbers at USW events. I was very proud to attend the 50th anniversary of U.S. wheat market development organizations in the Philippines. After one event, Norman Uy and his family honored me by hosting dinner. His son Stevie visited my farm the following year and is now taking over the mill.”

STEVIE UY
AVP & SBU Head, Flour Division, RFM Corporation, Republic of the Philippines

“RFM Corporation pioneered the regional flour milling industry in 1958. Today, it is one of the biggest food and beverage companies in the Philippines. I am in the 4th generation managing part of the company. I have been to the United States with USW twice. In Washington, Randy Suess took us to a plateau overlooking fields of golden soft white wheat in every direction. U.S. farmers are all proud of their production and heritage. These visits helped me appreciate where our raw materials come from and how much work and risk the farmer must take every year.”

 

DON SCHIEBER
Oklahoma Wheat Farmer, 2010/11 USW Chairman

“In 2014 a USW trade team visited my farm. I had a great time giving the team members rides in my combine. Anna-Mart Rust with Pioneer Foods in South Africa really enjoyed it and we talked about the differences between our lives. This memorable experience came full circle in September 2018 when I met Anna-Mart again, this time in South Africa on a USW Board Team visit and she took me to a farm equipment dealer and farm show, and hosted me in her home. That kind of connection is so important.”

ANNA-MART RUST
Procurement Manager, Pioneer Foods, South Africa

“It was wonderful to reconnect with Don Schieber when Pioneer Foods hosted a USW group in 2018 in South Africa. I took Don to a John Deere retailer, to a big agricultural show and to our Stellenbosch Winelands. This day is memorable as I could show Don how farmers and other South Africans live compared with American farmers, as he did when I visited his farm in 2014. We shared our differences but we found we had the same goal — to produce the best wheat and food possible!”

Discover more stories about the connection between U.S. wheat farmers and their customers.

 

View video on Vimeo.

 

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The Story Behind Dependable People, Reliable Wheat

Over the years, U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) has described the value of U.S. wheat to overseas buyers, millers and wheat food processors in many ways. We have called it “the world’s most reliable choice.” We have suggested it is “the wheat you want from producers you can depend on.” And we have offered it as “high quality wheat for every need with unmatched service and value.”

What we have said about U.S. wheat is not an empty promise. Through seasons of surplus and scarcity, and wide variability in prices, USW continues to make this case because U.S. wheat farmers have consistently produced abundant supplies of excellent quality wheat that has earned an enduring reputation for reliability and value over many years.

Every year, productive U.S. wheat farm families produce enough wheat to fill dinner tables at home, and still have more than half their crops to share with milling and food industries around the world.

As part of our celebration of 40 years operating as USW, we remain true to the differential value of U.S. wheat in this simple expression: “Dependable People. Reliable Wheat.”

Ultimately, USW believes customers from around the world continue to turn to the United States for wheat because buying it carries less risk. U.S. wheat quality is predictable and the Federal Grain Inspection Service (FGIS), as an objective third party, certifies that all exported wheat meets import specifications. Their inspectors create a shipping log that is available to the buyer as an additional risk management tool.

The Federal Grain Inspection Service (FGIS), as an objective third party, certifies that all exported wheat meets import specifications.

The U.S. wheat store also offers six distinct classes that are proven specific, high-quality ingredients for any end-product need. Hard red winter, hard red spring, soft white, hard white, soft red winter wheat and durum each offer inherent quality and functional value.

That is reliable wheat.

Moreover, no other wheat seller does more than the United States to add value to its wheat through customer support. At its very base, this support comes from the farm families who take great care in producing the highest quality wheat in the most sustainable ways possible. They work hard each year to grow their farms, honor their family legacies and to ensure greater value for their customers at home and abroad.

In good years and bad, U.S. wheat farmers have supported USW’s effort to work directly with buyers to answer questions and resolve issues in purchasing, shipping or using their six classes of wheat. Their contributions to state wheat commissions who in turn contribute a portion of those funds to USW, which in turn qualifies USW to apply for export market development funds managed by USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service.

With USW, buyers also get professional technical assistance, education, information and personalized consulting that help strengthen overseas milling, storage and handling, and end product industries.

The highest quality food for the world demands the highest quality wheat. For 40 years dependable people have made the difference.

Today, we remain fixed on the mission of the farmers who created an enduring legacy of commitment and partnership to provide the highest quality wheat for almost every customer need, backed by transparent pricing, trusted third-party certification and unmatched service before and after the sale.

Those are dependable people.

We invite our customers to join us in celebrating our 40th year as USW. We will continue to share the many ways in which the reliability of U.S. wheat and the dependability of U.S. farmers, USW, and our government and educational partners make a positive difference for our customers all over the world.

 

View video on Vimeo.

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Wheat Industry News

Recent news and highlights from around the wheat industry.

Speaking of Wheat: “Wheat farmers and Mexico’s wheat buyers are very glad to see the cloud of uncertainty lifted from our trade relationship. Replacing NAFTA without harm to the wheat trade relationship was a priority for all of us – mission accomplished.” – Doug Goyings, USW Chairman and Wheat Farmer from Paulding, Ohio, noting one of the benefits of the U.S., Mexico, Canada Agreement signed into U.S. law last week by President Trump.

Our Sincere Sympathy to former USW colleague Pam Leckie Wiese and the family of former USW Regional Vice President, Sub-Sahara Africa, Ed Wiese who passed away at age 71 on Jan. 25, 2020, in Florida.

Japanese Perceptions of Gene Editing. A team of Japanese researchers surveyed Japanese experts and the public about their perceptions of the benefits, risks, and value of using gene editing in Japan. A partial summary of results suggested that molecular biology experts had higher benefit and value perceptions, as well as lower risk perceptions regarding new technologies. Although the lay public tended to have more favorable attitudes toward gene editing than toward genetic modification, such differences were much smaller than their perceived differences between conventional breeding and genetic modification. Read more in Nature Communications Journal. Click here to read USW positions on plant breeding innovation.

California Wheat’s Claudia Carter Interviewed. Claudia Carter, Executive Director of the California Wheat Commission, was recently featured in an episode of the “Regenerative Agriculture Podcast.” Originally from Ecuador, Claudia leads research around the marketability of California wheat and helps to develop and maintain domestic and international markets for this commodity. She describes her educational journey in cereal sciences, and her focus on the durum quality parameters that processors need to develop a good pasta. Claudia and the host also discuss biofortification, the process of breeding wheat varieties for a specific nutritional profile. Listen to the podcast here.

Wheat All About It! Speaking of podcasts, Washington Grain Commission (WGC) publishes a very informative weekly podcast all about wheat and the wheat industry in the Pacific Northwest. Click here to listen to the latest episodes. You may also subscribe to “Wheat All About It!” on iTunes and other podcast apps like Stitcher, Pocket Cast, Overcast and Radio FM, or download multiple episodes from the WGC website at wagrains.org.

EPA Evaluation of Glyphosate. In January 2020, after receiving and considering public comments on the glyphosate proposed interim decision, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the interim decision for registration review. As part of this action, EPA continues to find that there are no risks of concern to human health when glyphosate is used in accordance with its current label. EPA also found that glyphosate is unlikely to be a human carcinogen. EPA is requiring management measures to help farmers target pesticide sprays to intended pests, protect pollinators, and reduce the problem of weeds becoming resistant to glyphosate. Read more here.

U.S. Flour Miller Invests in Wheat Quality. Grain Craft, the largest U.S. independent flour miller, has increased its commitment to improving wheat quality with another gift to the Kansas Wheat Commission Research Foundation (KWCRF). The gift will build upon previous support of research to improve wheat quality and yield through proper fertility management. “Preliminary results from the research indicate there is a strong correlation between proper fertility management of wheat by farmers and not only the quantity, but quality of the protein produced,” according to Dr. Romulo Lollato, Wheat Production Extension Specialist at Kansas State University in Manhattan. Read more here.

Subscribe to USW Reports. USW publishes a variety of reports and content that are available to subscribe to, including a bi-weekly newsletter highlighting recent Wheat Letter blog posts, the weekly Price Report and the weekly Harvest Report (available May to October). Subscribe here.

Follow USW Online. Visit our page at https://www.facebook.com/uswheat for the latest updates, photos and discussions of what is going on in the world of wheat. Also, find breaking news on Twitter at https://twitter.com/uswheatassoc and video stories on Vimeo at https://vimeo.com/uswheatassociates.

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