May 2, 2019
Meet the USW Technical Experts: Marcelo Mitre – A Love of Food and Technology that Bakes in Value and Loyalty
Originally published April 25, 2019
By Steve Mercer, USW Vice President of Communications
Growing up in Mexico City and Monterrey, Mexico, young Marcelo Mitre’s experiments in his family kitchen firmly established his interest in food and, eventually, a career in the science of food production. Read the full article here.
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USDA Confirms Delay in Spring Wheat Planting and Good Potential for Winter Wheat
Originally published April 30, 2019
This week, the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) reported that as of April 28, U.S. spring wheat planting progress is significantly behind average as farmers wait for their fields to dry out. Over the past 5 years, an average of 33% of spring wheat was in the ground by now but this year only 13% has been seeded. Progress is better in the Pacific Northwest, but still less than 10% in the major production area of the Northern Plains. Read the full article here.
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The Long-Term Risks of “National Security” Tariffs Have Appeared
Originally published April 30, 2019
By Ben Conner, USW Vice President of Policy
In June 2017, U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) suggested that pursuing a strategy of import protection under the guise of national security would set a dangerous precedent. Then USW President Alan Tracy said “… if the United States undermines WTO national security exemptions, it would be handing a gift-wrapped roadmap of protectionism to food self-sufficiency advocates all over the world.” Read the full article here.
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Promoting Wheat Around the World
Originally published May 1, 2019
As U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) President Vince Peterson often says, at any given hour of the day there is someone, somewhere, talking about the quality, reliability and value of U.S. wheat. Wheat Letter wants to share some of the ways USW was working the past few months to promote all six classes of U.S. wheat in an ever more complex world wheat market. Read the full article here.
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Wet, Cold HRW Wheat Tour Predicts Good Yield Potential
Originally published May 2, 2019
By Claire Hutchins, USW Market Analyst
This week, two U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) colleagues and I joined the Wheat Quality Council (WQC) on its 62nd annual “Hard Winter Wheat” Tour for an early survey of the 2019/20 hard red winter (HRW) crop in Kansas and parts of surrounding states. Just a few hours before USW published this issue of “Wheat Letter,” the tour estimated a final average yield potential of 47.2 bushels per acre (bu/ac) or about 3.18 metric tons (MT) per hectare for the 2019/20 Kansas HRW crop. Read the full article here.
USW Director of Programs Erica Oakley
For more photos follow #wheattour19 on Twitter!
USW Market Analyst Claire Hutchins
For more photos follow #wheattour19 on Twitter!
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“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.
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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.” 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.
Source: U.S. Wheat Associates