With the 2014 wheat crop in the bins and sowing of the 2015 winter wheat crop well underway, the U.S. wheat industry is embarking on a busy schedule of meetings around the world. This is a chance to review the experiences of the immediate past to help the industry continue to improve and support its customers into the future.
After a successful North Asia Marketing Conference with customers from Japan, Korea and Taiwan the week of Oct. 13, U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) President Alan Tracy travelled to Brazil to speak at the Brazilian wheat industry (ABITRIGO) conference. There he suggested that wheat buyers should carefully monitor the world corn market as well as wheat to help weather volatile price swings. Tracy also reviewed how consumer-facing U.S. wheat organizations defend against the gluten-free phenomenon.
This week, USW farmer directors and staff are in the state of New Mexico for the Fall Wheat Conference. The USW and the National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) boards hold joint meetings twice each year, including at this conference. In addition to the individual boards of directors meetings, there is a full schedule of committee meetings, including joint committees on biotechnology and international trade.
Consolidating the final 2014 grade and functional data for all six U.S. wheat classes was challenging this year with a late harvest. Yet, as they have for decades, USW and its partner organizations are now sharing the data at USW’s annual series of Crop Quality Seminars. These events will continue into November and USW has posted final data for soft red winter and hard red winter wheat at www.uswheat.org/cropQuality, and will soon publish complete data for all six classes. For more information about the Crop Quality Seminars and 2014-crop quality data, contact your local USW representative.
Alan Tracy will continue his international travels in November, first to speak at the Latin American Millers Association (ALIM) annual meeting in Dominican Republic. USW Vice President of Overseas Operations Vince Peterson will also speak at ALIM where 2014/15 Chairman Roy Motter, from Brawley, CA, will represent U.S. wheat farmers. Tracy then will deliver what USW considers an important speech at the IAOM Middle East and Africa Region Annual Meeting in Cape Town, South Africa, in early December. He then continues to Saudi Arabia for a speaking engagement at the International Grains Forum.
Annual domestic wheat farmer meetings start Nov. 13 when state wheat associations from Oregon, Washington and Idaho meet together. State wheat organizations continue to meet through early December and USW will send representatives to most of those meetings to report on the successes and challenges of the past calendar year.
Source : uswheat.org