Food Business News - November 22, 2011 - 58

Ingredient Markets
Market commentary for one-week period ended November 18, 2011

Bakery Flour
Bookings of bakery ﬂour were limited last week. Price changes were choppy, subject to the push and pull of alternately rising and declining wheat futures prices, historically strong cash wheat markets and advancing millfeed prices. Pan bread ﬂour prices and soft ﬂour prices ﬁnished the week lower while spring grades advanced. Most business concluded involved ﬁlling gaps in nearby coverage and minor additions to January-March ownership. At the same time, there were scattered ﬂat bookings taken deep into 2012 by ﬂour users who found prices within their ﬁscal year budget’s targets. Those buyers were willing to cover at least a portion of their deferred ﬂour needs at current levels. This forward activity did not constitute particularly heavy volumes as yet. Wheat futures prices sharply down from their August highs continued to encourage some bakers to cover the futures component of prospective ﬂour bookings for various periods in 2012 including some activity into the fourth quarter. Historically high cash wheat markets discouraged a more aggressive stance with regard to ﬂour booking. At 140c over the K.C. December wheat future, the basis on 12%-protein hard red winter wheat compared with 15c over a year earlier. At 230c over the Minneapolis March wheat future, the basis on 14%-protein hard red spring wheat compared with 85c over a year earlier. Soft red winter wheat mill bids at St. Louis at 45c over Chicago December were up 30c a bu from November 2010.

Millers continued to estimate JanuaryMarch ﬂour coverage at around 40%; when component activity was included, commitments to contracts for the quarter were said to embrace around 60% of prospective needs. While grind averaged around six days in most areas, individual mills ran as many as seven days in some regions and as little as ﬁve days in others. FBN

Family Flour
Sales of national and regional brands of family ﬂour were seasonally brisk. Carlot list prices were unchanged. Shipments were expected to slow the week after Thanksgiving but then pick up until about a week before Christmas. Once the winter holidays are past, the family ﬂour market typically goes into a sluggish period that lasts several weeks. Advertising campaigns and in-store promotions of family ﬂour haven’t been aggressive overall because of high wheat prices, but there were scattered instances of 5-lb bags of ﬂour being offered as low as 99c. Far more typical were 5-lb bags offered at around $2.50 with occasional promotions of two bags for $4. FBN

Semolina
Bookings of semolina, granulars and durum ﬂour were limited last week but inquiry for the ﬁrst half of 2012 increased. Prices registered narrow declines. The price of choice milling hard amber

durum quoted as a delivered Chicago/ beyond value was $14 a bu, down 25c from a week earlier. The Chicago price equated to a Minneapolis price of $13.70 a bu, the lowest since June when the market anticipated a larger durum area for 2011 than producers were able to plant because of the excessively wet spring. The Canadian Wheat Board offered milling durum held in storage in Thunder Bay., Ont., at the equivalent of $13.75 a bu, down 40c from the previous week. The lower C.W.B. price was thought to indicate a more aggressive stance toward sales to the United States. While durum prices have been declining, they remained at historically wide premiums to spring wheat values. This encouraged substitution of spring wheat ﬂour for durum semolina for pasta not requiring 100% durum semolina. High prices also were expected to spur an expansion in desert durum area in Arizona, California and Mexico, and should prices remain strong into spring, increased plantings across the northern Plains. It was pointed out northern Plains producers last spring indicated they intended to plant 2,140,000 acres to durum, but because of foul spring weather, they actually planted only 1,161,000 acres, resulting in a short crop and tight supplies. FBN

Bakers standard, Kansas City
Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt
$26.00 $23.00 $20.00 $17.00 $14.00 $11.00 N F M
Previous Year

Bakery ﬂour
Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt — Change from — Year Nov. 18 Nov. 11 Nov. 4 ago Kansas City Bakers short patent Bakers standard patent Second clear Third clear Minneapolis Spring short patent Spring standard patent High gluten Whole wheat Specialty whole wheat Fancy spring clear First spring clear Rye, white Chicago Cracker Fancy cake New York Winter/spring blend Spring standard patent High gluten Fancy cake Rye, white Los Angeles Bakers standard patent Pastry 18.30 18.20 12.50 5.80 23.40 23.30 26.30 23.30 23.65 23.15 23.05 21.75 14.45 15.95 20.70 25.85 28.85 17.95 24.25 22.40 20.85 -0.75 -0.75 — — 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 -0.05 -0.45 -0.45 -0.75 0.15 0.15 -0.45 -0.05 -0.75 -0.75 -1.45 -1.45 — — -0.60 -0.60 -0.60 -0.60 -0.60 -0.60 -0.60 -0.15 -1.25 -1.25 -1.45 -1.30 -1.30 -1.25 -0.15 -0.75 -0.75 16.50 16.40 12.50 5.80 17.30 17.20 20.20 17.20 17.55 17.05 16.95 13.55 16.00 17.50 18.90 19.90 22.90 19.50 16.05 19.35 19.15

No. 1 hard amber durum
Track, Minneapolis — Change from — Year $ per bu Nov. 18 Nov. 11 Nov. 4 ago Choice milling 13% 13.70 -.25 -.60 9.00 cents per bu Amber discount 10.00 — — 10.00 Durum discount 10@40 — — 10@40 Pufﬁng premium 0 — — 0
A
Current Year

Spring standard, Minneapolis
Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt
$33.00 $29.00 $25.00

Semolina
Bulk, f.o.b. Minneapolis, $ per cwt — Change from — Nov. 18 Nov. 11 Nov. 4 Semolina 33.00 -.65 -1.60 Granulars 32.80 -.65 -1.60 Flour 32.70 -.65 -1.60 First clear 19.10 — +1.25 Second clear 13.00 — +.50 Semolina - N.Y. 35.70 -.65 -1.60 Year ago 21.65 21.45 21.35 13.60 11.00 24.35

$21.00 $17.00 $13.00 N F M
Previous Year

A
Current Year

Cracker ﬂour, Chicago
Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt
$22.00 $18.00 $14.00 $10.00 N F M
Previous Year

Nationally advertised family ﬂour
Dollars Nov. 18 Family patent, 2-25s papers 24.12 4-10s n.a. 8-5s 18.62 18-2s 20.64 Self-rising n.a. Year ago 22.50 18.25 18.40 21.76 +88c per bale

A
Current Year

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November 22, 2011

Food Business News - November 22, 2011

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