DURUM MARKET A WORK IN PROGRESS
BY ELLEN PRUDEN • PHOTO COURTESY OF CEREALS CANADA
Noodles have been a treasured food staple in China for nearly 4,000 years, but recent demand for high-quality pasta has grown. According to the World Instant Noodles Association, China was the world’s largest instant noodle consumer at 43.8 billion servings in 2024. Over the last decade, however, a shift has taken place as pasta has been adopted alongside traditional noodles and gained market share. Trade experts agree this shift has the potential to hugely impact CWAD exports.
According to Euromonitor, the Chinese pasta market is small in comparison to the rice and noodle markets, but it is expected to grow quickly.
“Based on our analysis and customer meetings, we see an opportunity,” said Leif Carlson, director, market intelligence and trade policy at Cereals Canada. “Canada has the best durum quality, and our technical team can provide the expertise and customer support for CWAD, including milling, semolina analysis and pasta production.”
Cereals Canada is working to expand opportunities for CWAD in collaboration with COFCO International, China’s largest agribusiness company. In November 2023, COFCO imported Canadian durum for the first time. That same month, during the Cereals Canada New Crop Trade and Technical Missions, discussions explored durum wheat and pasta production opportunities with Chinese customers.
These initial conversations led to the creation of the COFCO Durum Technical Exchange Program in August 2024. Designed to showcase the quality benefits of CWAD, the program was held at the Cereals Canada facilities in Winnipeg, MB, which allowed its experts to demonstrate the Canadian advantage through hands-on activities in the organization’s analytical and pasta labs and mill.
To build on the engagement with COFCO, a followup mission took place this past fall. In September, members of the Cereals Canada technical team, led by Elaine Sopiwnyk, vice-president of technical services, travelled to China to work directly with millers and pasta manufacturers. With the support of COFCO, the team visited flours mills in Xiamen and Kunshan to see how each mill processes durum, and to learn about local market preferences for pasta products.
Samples of products using Canadian durum wheat were shared at both locations, and the Cereals Canada team provided presentations on multiple subjects: optimization of milling processes; assessment of wheat, semolina and pasta quality; pasta processing using CWAD and common wheat blends; and quality expectations and variety registration for CWAD.
“Domestic production of pasta is limited, but imported pasta brands remain popular due to brand recognition and the perception of premium quality,” said Sopiwnyk. “Our targeted engagement with Chinese customers consistently drives home the point that premium pasta products are made with CWAD.”
In 2025, Canada supplied 25,300 tonnes of CWAD to China, which accounted for 57 per cent of the country’s total durum wheat imports during this period. In December, a delegation from the 2025 New Wheat Crop Trade and Technical Asian Mission made a stop in China for further discussions with Chinese importers.
Several forces propel the rise of pasta consumption in China. Urbanization, busy work schedules, exposure to western-style foods that include imported pasta and consumption by young people drive demand. Pasta is seen as a convenient, quick-to-prepare meal, making it an attractive option for time pressed consumers.
Given its growing middle class and evolving tastes, China’s pasta market represents a substantial opportunity. If we continue to produce world-class durum wheat, backed by world-class customer support, that’s a lot of pasta-bilities for Canada.
Ellen Pruden is Cereals Canada vice-president of communications and value chain relations.
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