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WHEAT
EVOLUTION
Global grains
As anyone feeling the effects
of Father Time will tell you, 25 years
brings a lot of changes—some for the
better, others not so much. The same can
be said for international wheat markets
over the past few decades, which have
similarly moved forward in some areas
and backward in others. In the process,
they’ve presented Canadian farmers
and exporters with their fair share of
challenges, opportunities and perhaps a
glimpse of what lies ahead.
Wheatwatchersweigh inonyearsofmarket changes
One of the most telling changes has
been the makeup of international wheat
markets: who’s buying, who’s selling and
who can be described as a major player.
“At one time, the Soviet Union was our
top customer,” said Cam Dahl, president
of Cereals Canada. “Over the years, they
have been replaced by countries like Bang-
ladesh—which buys over a million tonnes
of wheat from Canada every year—and
Indonesia, as well as the regions of West
Africa, Latin America and South Asia.”
Canada’s main competitors have also
changed. For example, Dahl pointed to
the countries of the former Soviet Union
that have gone from being some of our
largest customers to some of the largest
wheat exporters in the world.
“To me, the most glaring statistic is the
percentage of global wheat exports attrib-
uted to Canada and the United States,”
said Brennan Turner, president and CEO
of FarmLead, which bills itself as “North
America’s Grain Marketplace.”
Photos: iStockPhoto
Over the last 25 years, international wheat markets have experienced a significant shakeup, changing Canada’s top customers and competitors in the process.
Spring
2017
Grains
West
48