Milling & Baking News - March 7, 2023 - 50

MARKET trends
Bulk, f.o.b. car, per cwt
Bulk, f.o.b. car, per cwt
Bulk, f.o.b. car, per cwt
TUES | 03 07 2023
BAKERS STANDARD, KANSAS CITY
Bakery Flour
Bookings of bakery flour were robust
last week. A flurry of contracting kicked off
the previous Friday continued as the last
days of February expired and the calendar
flipped to March. Prices dropped alongside
lower wheat futures prices and deteriorating
basis values that more than offset
declines in select millfeed markets.
" In short, people are buying dips when
they see a buying opportunity, " said a
miller who sold eight days of grind in the
first three days of the week. " Basis can be
akin to a dance between miller and baker.
Buyers don't jump in immediately when the
price card comes down, but we start stepping
in time together a couple days later. "
The Minneapolis spring wheat basis saw
mixed changes most days, but the benchmark
14%-protein traded in a wider-to-lowside
range. The Kansas City hard red winter
wheat basis continued a multi-week slide
before steadying through most of the week.
Soft red winter wheat basis in the Central
states remained " no quote " for several mills
and commercial elevators but slipped lower
in St. Louis as March commenced.
" Nearby basis has grown friendlier, and
a lot of the dips have come through in the
deferred periods now, " a miller said. " The
biggest activity in the week was flat pricing,
No. 2 was futures-only bookings and No. 3
basis only. Millfeed is a sore spot right now.
It's like a dentist visit that you don't plan for
until you're there in the parking lot. "
BAKERY FLOUR
- Change from - Year
March 3 Feb. 24 Feb. 17 ago
Kansas City
Bakers short patent
Bakers standard patent
Second 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
21.10 -0.40
21.00 -0.40
8.85
-
-1.85 30.35
-1.85 30.25
- 8.85
22.65 -0.05 -0.95 27.40
22.55 -0.05 -0.95 27.30
23.45 -0.05 -0.95 28.30
22.55 -0.05 -0.95 27.30
22.90 -0.05 -0.95 27.65
22.40 -0.05 -0.95 27.15
22.30 -1.05 -0.95 27.05
24.85
0.25
16.10 -0.50
17.60 -0.50
23.50 -0.40
24.55 -0.20
25.45 -0.20
19.60 -0.50
27.35
0.25
Los Angeles
Bakers standard patent 26.00 -0.40
Pastry
26.15 -0.40
Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt
50 MILLING & BAKING NEWS
0.50 16.75
-2.20 27.55
-2.20 29.05
-1.85 32.75
-1.45 29.55
-1.45 30.55
-2.20 31.05
0.50 19.25
-1.85 34.45
-1.85 34.50
Semolina
Bookings of semolina, granulars and
durum flour expanded last week as pasta
manufacturers began to shore up thirdquarter
coverage and dip their toes into
fourth-quarter bookings. Prices for those
products initially popped higher last week
DURUM AND SEMOLINA
- Change from - Year
March 3 Feb. 24 Feb. 17 ago
Durum
Chicago
Minneapolis
12.10
11.90
-.15
-.15
-.15 17.00
-.15 16.80
No. 1 Hard Amber Durum Choice Milling 13%, Track, $ per bu
Semolina
Semolina
Granulars
Flour
First clear
Second clear
Semolina - NY
March 3
28.85
28.65
28.55
15.00
7.50
32.15
Bulk, f.o.b. Minneapolis, $ per cwt
- Change from - Year
Feb. 24 Feb. 17 ago
-.20
-.20
-.20
-
-
-.20
- 40.85
- 40.65
- 40.55
- 15.00
- 7.50
- 44.05
A broad array of customer segments
came in for coverage: large commercial
bread bakeries, mid-size independent
regional bakeries, makers of breading and
batters for foodservice channels, quick-service
restaurant suppliers and bakery distributors
and, in smaller volume, consumer
packaged goods manufacturers.
Current-quarter pan bread and spring
grade flour coverage estimates hit 95% with
soft flour trailing at 90%. For April-June,
pan bread and spring flours were about 75%
covered with soft flour at 55%. Third-quarter
coverage from pan bread bakers and
spring grade users hit 35%, and soft flour
reached 15%. Out to October-December,
cookie-cracker and specialty bakers had
5% covered, compared with 15% for other
types. MBN
Family Flour
While sales and shipments of national
and regional brands of family flour were
seasonably sluggish last week, orders to
stock grocery, mass merchandiser and club
store shelves ahead of Easter on April 9 were
starting to increase, a trend expected to
continue for a few weeks before downshifting
until the summer sporting events and
barbecue bun seasons kick off.
Carlot list prices were unchanged.
Private label sales were slim in the week.
Most buyers were covered through the crop
year, some as far as September. Many were
believed to have privately booked futures
further out, to be combined later with basis
prices and millfeed values. MBN
$12.00
$18.00
$24.00
$30.00
$36.00
MJ SD
Previous Year
Current Year
SPRING STANDARD, MINNEAPOLIS
$12.00
$16.00
$20.00
$24.00
$28.00
$32.00
$36.00
MJ SD
Previous Year
CRACKER FLOUR, CHICAGO
$11.30
$14.30
$17.30
$20.30
$23.30
$26.30
$29.30
MJ SD
Previous Year
Current Year
as depressed Upper Midwest millfeed values
dipped again, but were ultimately lower
for the week as durum values resumed
January's slow grind lower after pausing at
$12.25 a bu for most of February.
Easing semolina prices in concert with
internal calendar requirements for semolina
coverage encouraged some major pasta
manufacturers to lock in. One miller said
April-June coverage went from 50%-60% a
week earlier to 60%-70%.
The price of choice milling hard amber
durum as quoted at the Chicago rail gateway
for delivery beyond was $12.10 a bu,
15¢ a bu lower. Global markets were quiet
while domestic semolina demand jumped,
and mills sought coverage. Spring wheat's
spread to durum tugged closer to $1 a bu.
Robust shipping instructions kept
durum mills grinding 5½ to 6 days. Rail
service suffered only minutely during a
winter storm in the Upper Midwest, and in
any case, inventories were " fat and happy. "
A miller said solid pasta demand was
partly on a post-pandemic uptick in consumer
interest, both in the value of pasta for
protein delivery during a wintry economic
climate, and in cooking meals at home when
compared to the before times. MBN
bakingbusiness.com
Current Year
http://www.bakingbusiness.com
Milling & Baking News - March 7, 2023

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