Milling & Baking News - September 12, 2017 - 40

Ingredient Week X

Bakery Flour
Bookings of bakery flour were limited
last week. Price adjustments were mixed
according to grade. Pan bread flour prices were raised as the cash hard red winter wheat basis rallied. Prices of spring
grades and soft flour were little changed
from a week earlier.
What activity there was last week primarily involved bakers filling gaps in
October-December coverage, which now
was similar for all grades and estimated
at 70%. This reflected completed contracts. Many bakers covered the futures
component of fourth-quarter flour contracts much earlier, leaving only the cash
basis and/or millfeed credits to cover to
complete the bookings. This made the
recent surge in the cash hard red winter
wheat basis particularly disturbing to
bread bakers. At the same time, with the
spike in the nearby basis, the carry in the
cash hard red winter wheat market to the
fourth quarter may seem less daunting.
Bakers and their suppliers discussed
how to approach completing fourthquarter coverage and extending physical
ownership into the first quarter of 2018. It
should be noted many bakers also earlier
covered the futures component of flour
contracts into the first quarter or even the
first half of 2018. Some have been covering basis into 2018, but there was much
business yet to be done. As is typically the
case, millfeed credits will probably be the
last component to be covered.
Wheat futures trended higher during
the last couple of weeks but were trading

Bakery ﬂour

Family Flour
Sales of national and regional brands
of family flour increased seasonally. Carlot list prices were unchanged.
Sales and shipments were expected to
increase steadily with the approach of the
key fall baking season. Promotions during the baking season were expected to be
similar to those featured last year, when
5-lb bags of flour were priced on grocers'
shelves at two for $5 or even two for $4.
Volume was expected to follow longterm trends characterized by a slight
year-over-year decline.
Most private label flour buyers earlier
booked their flour needs through the
baking season. MBN

Semolina
Bookings of semolina, granulars and
durum flour were light last week. Prices
were lowered.
The price of choice milling hard amber
durum as quoted at the Chicago gateway for delivery beyond was $9.50 a bu,
down 25c from the previous week. The
Minneapolis price was $9.20 a bu.
Pasta manufacturers earlier covered all
their semolina requirements for September, and October-December coverage was

estimated at 75%. Pasta makers seemed
comfortable with that extent of ownership. There was a carry in the cash durum
market amounting to 25c a bu into October-December compared with the nearby,
too narrow to hold back any buyers from
extending contract balances should they
wish to do so.
The North Dakota durum harvest was
74% completed by Sept. 3 compared
with 55% as the recent five-year average for the date. Ordinarily, condition
ratings so deep into the harvest aren't
useful, but in this instance, they were
at least notable. The U.S. Department of
Agriculture raised its rating for North
Dakota durum to 18% good to excellent,
45% fair and 37% poor to very poor compared with 10% good, 42% fair and 48%
poor to very poor a week earlier.
The Montana durum harvest was 84%
completed by Sept. 3 compared with
81% a week earlier, 77% a year ago and
61% as the average for the date.
U.S. durum growers were putting most
of the crop into storage. Durum offers from
Canadian growers and elevators helped
pressure prices. The trade was skeptical
Canadian durum production would be as
low as forecast by Statistics Canada at 3.9
million tonnes. The trade said production
may be closer to 4.8 million tonnes. MBN

Bakers standard, Kansas City
Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt
$19.00
$17.00
$15.00

No. 1 hard amber durum

Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt
Sept. 8
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

not far above recent lows. While the cash
hard red winter wheat basis was in the
midst of an upward tear, the cash spring
wheat basis was tame in comparison.
Mill grind was trimmed by Labor Day
observances but rebounded strongly later in the week and over the weekend. MBN

Track, Chicago
- Change from - Year $ per bu
Sept. 8
Sept. 1 Aug. 25 ago Choice milling 13% 9.50

- Change from - Year
Sept. 1 Aug. 25 ago
-.25
-.25
8.25

$13.00
$11.00
S

Previous Year

15.25
15.15
8.85
...

0.45
0.45
-
...

0.60
0.60
-
...

12.50 Track, Minneapolis
12.40 $ per bu
11.00 Choice milling 13% 9.20
...

16.85
16.75
19.75
16.75
17.10
16.60
16.50
14.55

0.15
0.15
0.15
0.15
0.15
0.15
0.15
-0.10

-0.85
-0.85
-0.85
-0.85
-0.85
-0.85
-0.85
-0.30

12.80
12.70
15.70
12.70
13.05
12.55
12.45
14.80

11.85
13.35

-0.10
-0.10

0.30
0.30

10.65
12.15

17.65
19.25
22.25
15.35
17.05

0.45
0.25
0.25
-0.10
-0.10

0.60
-0.65
-0.65
0.30
-0.30

14.90
15.05
18.05
14.15
17.30

20.25
20.30

0.45
0.45

0.60
0.60

17.60
17.65

40 / September 12, 2017 XMilling & Baking News

Current Year

Spring standard, Minneapolis
-.25

-.25

7.95

Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt
$22.00

Semolina

$20.00

Bulk, f.o.b. Minneapolis, $ per cwt
- Change from -
Sept. 8
Sept. 1 Aug. 25
Semolina
23.40
-.70
-.80
Granulars
23.20
-.70
-.80
Flour
23.10
-.70
-.80
First clear
17.00
...
...
Second clear 10.00
...
...
Semolina - N.Y. 26.60
-.70
-.80

Year
ago
20.45
20.25
20.15

$18.00
$16.00
$14.00
$12.00
S

M
Previous Year

Current Year

Cracker ﬂour, Chicago

23.25

Nationally advertised family ﬂour

Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt
$15.50

Dollars
Sept. 8
Family patent, 2-25s papers 24.12
4-10s
n.a.
8-5s
18.52
18-2s
20.64
Self-rising
n.a.

Year ago
24.12
n.a.
18.52
20.64
n.a.

$13.50
$11.50
$9.50
S

M
Previous Year

J
Current Year

bakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com

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

Milling & Baking News - September 12, 2017

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