Milling & Baking News - June 3, 2008 - 51

Ingredient Week

Sweeteners

Quiet returned to the sugar market
after an extended period of sporadic
activity. Prices were mostly unchanged,
although the occasional Midwest beet
sugar producer hiked numbers as much
as 3c a lb while acknowledging that nothing was trading at that level and immediate prospects for future business were
not favorable. Corn sweeteners were unchanged amid minimal activity.
Midwest beet sugar for 2008-09 (October-September) and for the 2009 calendar
year was offered at 30@33 a lb, f.o.b. Processors offered new crop at 31@32c Gulf,
31c Florida and 33c Northeast. West coast
was 31½@32½c. Some processors quoted
sugar for spot and the balance of the year
at the same levels or at small premiums
or discounts; nearby Northeast sugar
was at 31c f.o.b.
Most sources agreed except for scattered, small sales, business was at a
standstill. An occasional buyer indicated
some interest in further coverage but
at discounts to current prices. Sellers
showed no interest in shading numbers,
even where the trade had been negotiating prices only a week or two earlier.
Sugar producers emphasized mounting problems with the beet crop, especially in the western areas outside of the
Pacific coast. Plantings in the Red River
Valley were completed with some limited acreage cuts indicated, but further
west, the situation worsened. While sug-

Beet and cane sugar

ar beets in the latter area were planted
reasonably early, development because
of cold, wet weather has been disappointing. The inter-mountain situation
was termed by some as "especially serious." Some local producers, reflecting
their own outlook, largely withdrew
from the market while apparently selling less than half their normal new crop
potential. The situation was sufficiently
serious that some analysts said recent
WASDE 2008-09 beet sugar production
projections were clearly optimistic. The
WASDE outturn estimate was off 8.5%
from last year despite the 11% reduction
in acreage. With the latest beet crop setbacks, some now predicted production
could be off 14% to 16%.
Some major buyers continued to dismiss the crop concerns as premature.
Pointing to history showing the sugar
beet plant as "surprisingly sturdy" even
in times of inclement weather, some users
said they were prepared to wait for further crop development to see whether the
bullish projections would be realized.
Current estimates were sugar buyers
booked 50% to 75% of new crop total,
possibly 55% to 60%. Some major accounts have largely covered their prospective new crop needs while others
have booked nothing to date.
Recent passage of the farm bill, according to some observers, should assure "balanced supplies" of sugar for the
next five years. MBN

Bakery Shortening

A sharp, late-week price break triggered a modest expansion in bookings of
bakery shortening last week.
As has been the case for some time,
the energy market was a principal driver
in the market for bakery shortening, and
a decline of $4 a barrel in the price for
crude oil sent soybean oil futures tumbling. In response, a small number of
buyers operating on a hand-to-mouth
basis added 30 days or so to coverage.
Interest in more extensive forward coverage did not pick up, and no expansion
was viewed as imminent. One merchandiser said demand may pick up if soybean oil prices were to decline to the 55c
or 56c per lb range, but it was unclear
how extensive demand would be even
if prices were to decline 10c from recent
levels. Better weather was thought to be
needed to spur a setback in prices of soybean oil and other bakery shortenings.
Basis levels were steady, holding at
depressed levels that have prevailed for
some time. Buyers already had far more
extensive basis coverage than flat price
coverage, with a number of shortening
users booked many months forward.
Price changes for most other shortenings either were steady or moved in line
with soybean oil. Sunflowerseed oil was
steady in light trading. Planting of the 2008
crop was progressing ahead of normal, but
precipitation in North Dakota missed major growing areas to the west. MBN

Sweeteners
Delivered basis, cents per lb
42% HFCS spot price1

f.o.b. plant, cents per lb

HFCS list price2
Regular
- Change from - Year
corn
May 30
May 23 May 16 ago
syrup3
Dextrose
42% HFCS wet 55% HFCS wet
May 30
Year ago
Midwest beet 30.00 @ 33.00
-
-
25.00
19.875 East
18.875
21.875 net
173/8@ 175/8 143/8@ 145/8
31.35@33.35
Pacific beet
31.50 @ 32.50
-
-.50 27.50 Midwest
21.425 Midwest
20.425
23.425 net
30.35@32.35
Cane*
30.00 @ 30.05 -1.10
+.05 27.20 Northeast 18¾@ 19 15¾@ 16
21.625 West
20.625
23.625 net
Southeast 187/8@ 191/8 157/8@ 161/8
33.35@35.35
*Spot raw plus 7% plus 8.00c with 2% cash discount.
21.125
20.125
23.125 net
Southwest 18½@ 18¾ 15½@ 15¾
Raw cane
21.825
20.825
23.825 net
West
193/8@ 195/8 163/8@ 165/8
Delivered refiner, cents per lb
1-Variations in prices often tied to tank car versus truck deliveries. 2-Prices are the lowest available to the publication. 3-Regular 42 DE/43 Baume, f.o.b. tank cars, trucks
Contract
Nearby
June
July-September
October-December
January-March
April-June

- Change from -
May 30 May 23 May 16
20.95
-.05
+.05
20.95
-.05
+.05
20.90
-.15
-.05
21.25
-
-
21.30
+.05
+.10
21.35
-
+.10

Spot soybean oil
Decatur, Ill., bulk, cents per lb

Year
ago
21.20
21.20
21.20
21.05
21.20
21.35

Chicago soybean oil futures
Bulk in tank cars, cents per lb
May 30
- Change from -
Delivery
close
May 23
May 16
July
61.31
-2.25
-.54
August
61.66
-2.19
-.52
September 62.00
-2.17
-.50
October
62.30
-2.16
-.47
December 62.91
-2.15
-.46
January
63.24
-2.14
-.43

Edible oils
Bulk, cents per lb
Year
ago
35.80
36.07
36.32
36.54
37.09
37.36

Crude soybean oil
Bulk in tank cars, cents per lb
Delivery
Decatur, Ill.
May
60.06 @60.56
June
60.06 @60.56
July
60.06 @60.56
August
60.41 @60.91
September
60.75 @61.25
October
60.80 @61.05
November
61.11 @61.36
52 / June 3, 2008

Milling & Baking News

Western points
59.06 @60.06
59.06 @60.06
59.06 @60.06
59.41 @60.41
59.75 @60.75
59.30 @60.55
59.61 @60.86

- Change from - Year
May 30 May 23 May 16 ago
Soybean oil,
Decatur
60.50
Loose lard, Chicago 43.00
Edible tallow,
Chicago
43.00
Cottonseed oil,
Miss. PBSY
83.75
Palm oil, ports
64.50
Palm kernel oil,
ports
73.00
Coconut oil
73.00
Peanut oil,
Southeast
104.00
Corn oil, Decatur
87.00
Sunflowerseed oil,
Midwest
99.00
Canola oil, Midwest 73.25

-2.00
-

-
-1.00

34.00
30.00

-.50

32.00

-1.75
-3.50

-
-1.50

40.25
41.50

-2.00
+.50

-1.00 51.00
+1.50 41.75

+1.00
-3.00

+1.00 60.00
-3.00 35.25

-
-2.25

-
-

bakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com

55.00
42.75

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Milling & Baking News - June 3, 2008

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