Milling & Baking News - May 18, 2004 - 7

E D I T O R I A L

E.U. as global powerhouse of wheat and flour

ardly any statistic regarding the just accomplished enlargement of the European Union
from 15 to 25 member countries seems less
threatening than the estimate by the International
Grains Council that the 10 new members will add
100,000 tonnes to the E.U.'s annual flour exports. Considering that the Union for some years has held the lead
in flour exporting and that its clearances in 2003-04 are
forecast at 2.7 million tonnes in wheat equivalent, adding 100,000 tonnes ought not to be a source of much
concern. The problem, though, is that such a conclusion
smacks of the thought process denying that one may
drown in a pool that averages six inches in depth.
Of the 10 new member nations that joined the E.U. as of
May 1, three have been flour exporters. Hungary has been
the leader, shipping on average 150,000 tonnes annually.
Other shippers are the Czech Republic and Poland. These
countries primarily have supplied non-E.U. destinations.
Hardly any of the flour shipped by the present 15-member E.U. went to any of the ten new accession countries.
These "new" members have imported nearly as much as
they have exported, with the likelihood that these imports
will now be sourced from within the Union.
American millers long have contended that the Common Agricultural Policy has aided E.U. millers, in much
the same way as its once generous export subsidies. Yet,
in the face of efforts meant to help millers in member
countries, E.U. shipments have declined, primarily in
line with shrinking global flour trade. The latest estimate
by the I.G.C., placing E.U. flour shipments in 2003-04 at
2.7 million tonnes, is a pale shadow of record shipments
of 6,249,000 tonnes seven seasons earlier. European
millers also have lost market share, accounting for 30
per cent of this crop year's flour trade, contrasted with
55 per cent in 1996-97. While world trade has shrunk,
as once major importing countries build their own milling industries, the E.U. experience, as tough as it may
seem to European millers, is far better than the U.S. The
American industry, once the world leader in exporting,

is relegated to third place in 2003-04 with shipments of
700,000 tonnes, a little more than a fourth of Europe's.
The United States is not just behind the E.U., but also
lags Turkey's 700,000 tonnes.
The expanded 25-member E.U. will be a powerful
force in wheat production. The Grains Council forecasts
E.U.-25 wheat production in 2004 at 127.6 million tonnes,
which is more than double this year's U.S. wheat crop
prospect of 60 million. In 2003, the 25 countries, experiencing poor growing conditions, produced 106.5 million.
The 10 new members will account for 21.6 million tonnes
of this year's crop, up from 16.2 million in the previous
year. If the E.U. is treated as a single wheat-growing entity, it is the world production leader by a wide margin,
ranking well above China, at 83 million tonnes, India, at
75 million, and the Former Soviet Union, at 85 million.
Whether or not the E.U. is viewed as one or 25 different wheat-growing and wheat-consuming entities, its
importance in both wheat growing and milling may not
be overlooked. The Union has become the leader in flour
milling capacity when treated as a single market, and the
same also applies to bread baking. At the same time, no
one, even the most ardent advocates of a unified European
Union, would hold that the member countries consider
themselves as part of a single wheat system. The recent
failure of the 25 countries to agree on a constitution at the
summit late last year in Brussels provided a clear message
that eastward enlargement does not assure agreement.
Even as the May 1 enlargement date went without
hitch, enthusiasm within the new member states appears to be waning. Once considered a panacea to the
many ills of communism, membership now prompts
hard realism as to the consequences of joining. The E.U.
being the global powerhouse in wheat production, flour
milling and flour exporting has consequences for other
nations such as America, but the worrying possibilities
from this development are diminished by the long time
it will take to integrate these 75 million new citizens into
an E.U. that already has 380 million people.

Progress made toward elimination of trans fat

f the many ingredient changes that may be under
way in grain-based foods in response to current
dietary concerns - more whole grain, lower
carbohydrates, less fat, less cholesterol, less salt, fewer
calories - the one change on which widespread agreement is evident is doing everything possible to eliminate
or sharply reduce trans fat. This fat, also known as trans
fatty acids, forms when liquid oils are hydrogenated for
stability and improved performance. It has been found
to elevate the level of "bad" cholesterol, increasing the
risk of coronary heart disease. Although the statement
made by Dr. Walter C. Willett, professor at the Harvard
School of Public Health, at this year's meeting of the
American Society of Baking, that "trans fat is really
metabolic poison and should not be consumed by human beings" has not won total acceptance, a growing
urgency is evident to minimize use of this ingredient.
According to the Food and Drug Administration, the
average daily intake of trans fat is 5.8 grams, or 2.6 per
cent of the daily calorie intake for people 20 years and
older. Trans fat is present in a broad range of foods, with
its use in baking and snack foods mainly reflecting the
structural properties of partially hydrogenated vegetabakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com

ble oils. The F.D.A. further estimates that 40 per cent of
the trans fat eaten comes from cakes, cookies, crackers,
pies and bread. Bakers are quickly adopting other oils
to replace trans fat, and every major shortening supplier is working to offer trans-fat-free answers. Baking's
principal problem is with the cake, cookie and cracker
categories where suitable substitutes mean returning to
high levels of saturated fats. PepsiCo's Frito-Lay division has been particularly vociferous in advertising the
elimination of trans fat from its line of snacks.
While acknowledging that total elimination is nearly
impossible (trans fat is naturally present at low levels
in animal products such as milk, butter and meat), the
F.D.A. and the Department of Agriculture have endorsed
this ingredient modification with great fervor. Some
food manufacturers now voluntarily disclose trans fat
content on labels, anticipating the January 2006 deadline
for this first change in the Nutrition Facts panel since the
original regulations came into effect 11 years ago.
The industry's progress is good, but further steps are
required to eliminate this fat component. The ultimate goal
of ridding baked foods of trans fat, while difficult, appears
to be as certain as any change on baking's horizon. MBN
Milling & Baking News, May 18, 2004 / 7

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Milling & Baking News - May 18, 2004

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