West Australian Drought Boosts Wheat Crop Protein Level, Narrows APW-ASW Spread
S&P Global – 12/03/2019
Just 12% of the 3.8 million mt of wheat harvested to date this season in Western Australia is Australian Standard White or ASW, down sharply from 39% of the total harvest last year, traders said Tuesday. Prolonged dryness in the state has resulted in a higher protein crop, reducing the availability of lower grade wheat, market sources said. As the harvest that began in November progresses beyond the halfway stage, the protein level of ASW is averaging 9%-9.1% at ports in Western Australia, compared with 8.8% at the same time a year earlier, traders said. “This year there may be a lot of ASW that is blended with AH2 [to get] APW1. Growers have until January 15, I think, to optimize the crop,” a trader in Australia said. “The optimization will depend on where spreads [between grades] are trading to one another,” another trader said.
Iraq Outlines 2020 Wheat Import Goal, Says Protests Not Disrupting Cargoes
Reuters– 12/04/2019
Iraq, a major Middle East grain importer, said on Wednesday it planned to purchase 750,000 tonnes of wheat from abroad in 2020 and said nationwide protests that have extended to a key port were not disrupting shipments so far. Iraq needs between 4.5 million and 5 million tonnes of wheat a year to supply its food rationing programme. It mixes local wheat with grain from Australia, Canada and the United States. “This is within our planning budget,” Hassanein al-Zubaidi, the new head of the Iraq Grain Board, told Reuters, referring to the target of importing 750,000 tonnes of wheat next year. Zubaidi, who took up the post as head of the state grain buyer in October, said Iraq had 1.2 million tonnes of strategic wheat reserves, enough to last three months.
Upper House Approves U.S.- Japan Trade Deal
Japan Times – 12/04/2019
The Diet approved a trade deal with the United States on Wednesday that slashes tariffs on farm and industrial goods, clearing the way for its entry into force at the beginning of next year. The deal, agreed to by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Donald Trump in September, was approved by the Upper House following its passage in the Lower House last month. The White House says it does not need to consult Congress, meaning domestic procedures in both countries have effectively wrapped up. Trump has pushed the deal as a way to shrink his country’s massive trade deficit with Japan, and to mollify American farmers who were at a disadvantage against international competitors after his decision to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership regional free trade pact.
Milling Courses for Industry Proffesionals
Morning Ag Clips – 12/01/2019
Successfully milling grain requires many people who have an array of knowledge on how the milling process works. To cater to that, Kansas State University’s IGP Institute partnered with Buhler, Inc. to educate 11 participants through the Buhler–KSU Executive Milling and the Buhler–KSU Flowsheet Technology courses. The Buhler–KSU Executive Milling course held from November 4–8, 2019, is designed for mill owners, managers and directors who do not have practical milling backgrounds. Participants gain the skills to understand the challenges that their operations staff may encounter, as well as giving an overall view of the milling process. “This course gave a high-level view of the milling systems and how they work together to produce a high quality and food safe product,” says Jason Watt, Buhler Instructor of Milling. This course covered a multitude of topics within milling systems such as raw material, system design, finished product handling and storage, factors influencing investment decisions as well as many more.
Source: U.S. Wheat Associates