Grainnet

South African Wheat Team to Visit North Dakota

The North Dakota Wheat Commission (NDWC) will host a South African Wheat Team in North Dakota, June 28 – July 2.

Senior management staff from Pioneer Foods, Premier Foods, Tiger Brands and Ruto Mills, four of South African’s largest milling groups, will visit North Dakota to assess the current status of the state’s hard red spring crop.

  NDWC Marketing Specialist Erica Peterson says the team’s visit is positive for North Dakota and displays a growing interest in North Dakota’s hard red spring wheat crop.

  “The team’s visit will play a crucial role in boosting North Dakota’s market share in South Africa,” says Peterson.

“The visit will serve to inform the team about North Dakota’s hard red spring wheat, a class of wheat with a strong global demand because of its superior protein levels and functional quality.

We hope to further educate the team so that they will be better equipped to make informed purchasing decisions.

When their domestic crop is low in protein, the country must import high protein wheat and our hard red spring wheat is an optimal choice for blending with and improving the quality of inferior wheat.”

  The wheat team is scheduled to meet at the Northern Crop Institute Monday, June 30 to meet with NCI and NDSU researchers.

Team members will receive detailed reports on the global supply of wheat, the 2008 U.S. spring wheat crop situation, attend a purchasing strategy seminar, meet with wheat breeders and researchers, and receive additional information on how hard red spring wheat can be utilized as a blending wheat in their specific market dynamics.

The team will also tour the Maple River Grain Elevator in Casselton and visit a local farm.

  On average, South Africa imports 37 million bushels of wheat annually from the United States, Argentina, Australia, Canada and the EU. 

The U.S. market share varies greatly from year to year, averaging about 27 percent.

  South Africa imports an average of 2.6 million bushels of hard red spring wheat from the U.S. each year. 

Imports vary from year to year depending on the quality of the domestic production.

Total U.S. wheat exports to South Africa were up substantially this past year to 18.4 million bushels, a 50 percent increase from their typical level, primarily due to a large increase in hard red winter imports.

  The South African wheat team will be accompanied by Jim McKenna, milling consultant to the US Wheat Associates based in Cape Town, South Africa.

US Wheat Associates works to maintain and improve export market opportunities for American wheat farmers in 18 states with support from the farmers themselves through a per bushel checkoff.

For more information, call 701-328-5111.