Milling & Baking News - October 13, 2015 - 7

Editorial

Turnabout in flour export-import trade

or anyone in flour milling inclined to examine respectively. Many decades ago, flour exports drew
statistics, hardly any numbers are as fascinat- nearly half of the supply. Not so incidentally, the
ing as those showing that the United States present-day supply is the largest in history, thanks to
actually imports more wheat flour and wheat food growth in domestic consumption propelled mainly
products than it exports. Considering the history of in recent years by population gains. Actual output
American milling that began well before the birth of by U.S. mills falls a percentage point or so below fulthe nation itself, this is a startling transformation for ly supplying domestic consumption, with the deficit
an industry that at one time ranked as the world's filled by the import surplus over exports.
leading exporter of flour. On that export leadership
Flour exports and flour imports include besides
score, America has been hugely outpaced by coun- flour those products containing flour, primarily
tries like Turkey and Kazakhstan that have a geo- bread and pasta. In both exports and imports, prodgraphic advantage as well as great help from national uct shares have risen. As should be expected, Cangovernments doing much to stimulate the prosperity ada leads as the largest destination for U.S. flour
of their expanding domestic milling industries. That exports and the leading supplier of imports. Mexico
is markedly different from the total absence of caring ranks second in both. Although data are not availin Washington.
able to indicate just how the
No question arises about America's
American millers wisely
flour moving in trade is beopenness to imports of grain and
have chosen in recent years
ing used, it seems likely that
grain-based foods.
not to pursue governmena considerable part repretal support to spur wheat
sents intra-company moves
flour exports. Efforts have focused on emphasiz- between plants on both sides of the border under
ing relief aid as U.S.-made products and assuring common ownership.
that regulatory-related restrictions are limited. InEven with the nuances that explain this business,
deed, it would be through a partnership with advo- no question arises about America's openness to imcates seeking to stimulate shipments of U.S. wheat ports of grain and grain-based foods. Detailed comabroad that business could best be promoted. Wheat pilations just issued by the U.S. Department of Agfarmers beginning some time ago were inclined to riculture indicate that imports of grain milled prodneglect the lessons that should have been learned ucts, which are mainly wheat flour, have grown fastin the immediate post-World War II years. That les- est of any of the grain categories. The total value of
son was that building enduring export markets for such imports in 2013 was $1,374 million, which was
wheat depended largely on stressing quality wheat an amazing five times the value just before the end
flour made by U.S. mills.
of the last century. Wheat and wheat products alone
To note that wheat flour imports have expanded showed a fourfold expansion in the same period,
while exports have shrunk, as startling as that may reaching a total of $1,563 million. The same growth
be, is not to raise any cause for concern among U.S. pace ruled for all grain and grain product imports in
millers. That is best explained by the growth in the the period between 1999 and 2013.
size of the U.S. domestic flour market to the point
Even as trade in food and agricultural products
that both exports and imports account for only a has accelerated in recent years, it is grain foods and
small share of the total. The U.S. domestic supply of especially those based on wheat that have led the
flour is made up of production plus imports, which way. Albeit a minimal number in the total American
in recent years was near 430 million hundredweights. food market, awareness of where growth at this imImports in 2014 of 14.5 million hundredweights and pressive rate occurs is essential to responsible manexports of 9.3 million accounted for 3% and 2%, agement of American milling. MBN
MORTON SOSLAND, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
WE'RE EAGER TO GET YOUR FEEDBACK: E-mail editor@sosland.com or write to us at
Milling & Baking News, 4801 Main Street, Suite 650, Kansas City, Mo, 64112
EDITORIAL STAFF
Editor-in-chief
Morton I. Sosland
Executive editor, markets
Neil N. Sosland
Editor
L. Joshua Sosland
Senior editor, markets
Jay S. Sjerven
Managing editor
Eric J. Schroeder

Senior editor, markets
Ron Sterk
Associate editor
Jeff Gelski
Assistant editor, markets
Laura Lloyd
Internet editors
Rebekah Schouten
Monica Watrous
Graphic designer, market
graphics, data
Christina Sullivan

7bakingbusiness.com
/ March 13, 2007 X
/ world-grain.com
Milling & Baking News

PUBLISHING STAFF
Chairman and C.E.O.
Charles S. Sosland
President
L. Joshua Sosland
President emeritus
Mark Sabo
Associate publisher
G. Michael Gude
Vice-president, chief financial officer
Melanie Hepperly

Audience development director
Don Keating
Director of e-business
Jon Hall
Director of on-line
advertising and promotions
Carrie Fluegge
Advertising manager
Nora Wages

Director of design services
Sadowna Conarroe
Associate Design Services Manager
Ryan Alcantara
Circulation manager
Whitney Forrester
Digital systems analyst
Marj Potts
Manager of advertising design
Becky White

Milling & Baking News
bakingbusiness.com
XOctober 13,
/ world-grain.com
2015 / 7

http://www.bakingbusiness.com http://www.world-grain.com

Milling & Baking News - October 13, 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Milling & Baking News - October 13, 2015