Wheat Letter – October 5, 2017

October 5, 2017

USDA Reports Smallest U.S. Harvested Area in 127 Years

By Stephanie Bryant-Erdmann, USW Market Analyst

USDA’s Sept. 30 Small Grains Summary reported that U.S. farmers harvested 37.6 million acres (15.2 million hectares) of wheat for the 2017/18 crop, a 14 percent reduction from 2016/17 and the smallest harvested area since 1890. USDA estimated U.S. 2017/18 wheat production at 47.4 million metric tons (MMT) (1.74 billion bushels), down 25 percent year over year and 15 percent below the 5-year average. The smallest planted area since USDA record began in 1919, adverse weather conditions and wheat streak mosaic virus all contributed to reduced harvested area. Read the full article here.

Good Functional Characteristics, Lower Average Protein Mark New HRW Crop

USW and its partner organizations have completed the crop quality analysis of the 2017/18 U.S. hard red winter (HRW) crop. The final data is summarized below. The complete analysis will appear in both a class-specific report and USW’s 2017 Crop Quality Booklet, and shared with hundreds of customers around the world as part of USW’s annual Crop Quality Seminars. Read the full article here.

Emerging Philippine Milling Industry Leaders Visit the United States

By Amanda J. Spoo, USW Assistant Director of Communications

With new mills and an increasingly competitive price environment, the Philippines continues to be one of U.S. wheat’s top, consistent customers. As new industry leaders emerge there, USW recognizes the importance of providing training to increase millers’ knowledge of procurement strategies and the U.S. wheat marketing system through trade servicing in the South Asian nation and sometimes here at home. Read the full article here.

The 2017 USW Philippine Trade Team made a stop at the Washington Grain Commission.

Reintroducing U.S. Wheat to Angola’s Expanding Flour Milling Industry

The West African nation of Angola is making good progress in its desire to improve food security for a rapidly growing population, currently estimated at 24.5 million people. The Angolan government believes that building its own food processing capacity will help reduce the cost of importing food, while creating jobs for the Angolan people and preserving foreign exchange. Angola annually imports an estimated 800,000 MT of processed wheat flour from various origins. Read the full article here.

The International Treaties Upholding Science-Based Wheat Trade

By Elizabeth Westendorf, USW Assistant Director of Policy

It’s no secret that the U.S. wheat industry and its customers rely heavily on international trade rules to keep markets open and wheat moving. The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the prime example of this, particularly in its limits on tariffs and subsidies that have done so much to push towards a level playing field in global trade. But along with the WTO are other institutions that play a critical role in trade. Read the full article here.