Wheat Industry News
Recent news and highlights from around the wheat industry.
Quote of the Week: “I am convinced that the majority of American people do understand that we have a moral responsibility to foster the concepts of opportunity, free enterprise, the rule of law, and democracy. They understand that these values are the hope of the world.” – The late U.S. Sen. Richard Lugar who, with former Senate Finance Committee Chairman and Ambassador to China Max Baucus, founded “Farmers for Free Trade” in 2017. Sen. Lugar passed away April 28.
USDA Moves to New Notifications Platform. As of May 1, 2019, USDA moved its email subscription service to a different platform. To continue receiving notifications such as press releases, blogs and trade announcements you must re-enroll on their new site here.
2017 Census of Agriculture: Highlights for Wheat. The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released its 2017 Census of Agriculture statistics on April 11. The Census, released every 5 years, includes data on farm demographics, land area, production and production value and more at the national, state, and county levels. The National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) posted a blog highlighting wheat-specific data from the 2017 Census that shows a reduction in total U.S. farms producing wheat, production and planted area; spring and durum planted area increased. Read it here.
Earth Day. Monday, April 22, 2019 was the 49th Earth Day! In its recent blog, NAWG highlights how wheat growers incorporate conversation and sustainability practices into their operations. Read the blog here.
Minnesota Wheat Hires New Executive Director. The Minnesota Wheat Research & Promotion Council (MWRPC) and the Minnesota Association of Wheat Growers (MAWG) recently hired Charlie Vogel to serve as the Executive Director for both organizations. Vogel will start his duties on June 1, 2019. Read the full announcement here.
U.S. EPA: Glyphosate Not A Carcinogen. From a press release: “The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking an important step in the agency’s review of glyphosate. As part of this action, EPA continues to find that there are no risks to public health when glyphosate is used in accordance with its current label and that glyphosate is not a carcinogen. The agency’s scientific findings on human health risk are consistent with the conclusions of science reviews by many other countries and other federal agencies. While the agency did not identify public health risks in the 2017 human health risk assessment, the 2017 ecological assessment did identify ecological risks. To address these risks, EPA is proposing management measures to help farmers target pesticide sprays on the intended pest, protect pollinators, and reduce the problem of weeds becoming resistant to glyphosate.” Click here to read more.
Baking with Whole Wheat and Whole Grains Course. The Northern Crops Institute is hosting a course focused on the utilization of whole wheat flour made from hard red spring (HRS) wheat and how to incorporate other whole grain ingredients into wheat-based products. The July 30 to Aug. 2, 2019 course will be at its facilities in Fargo, N.D. Click here to learn more and register by Monday, July 8.
IAOM-KSU Flour and Dough Analysis. The IAOM-KSU Flour and Dough Analysis short course will be held at the IGP Institute in Manhattan, Kan., Sept. 10 to 12, 2019. The course will focus on flour and dough analysis practices and methods and correct interpretation and understanding of the results. Click here to learn more and register.
Buhler-KSU Executive Milling Short Courses. IGP Institute offers this executive milling course several times in 2019 at its campus in Manhattan, Kan. The course, focused on the underlying principles of the milling process and operational management, will be offered in English May 20 to 24, 2019, and Nov. 4 to 8, 2019, as well as in Spanish Aug. 26 to 30, 2019. Click here to register to 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 www.twitter.com/uswheatassoc and video stories at https://www.youtube.com/uswheatassociates.
