GrainsWest Fall 2019

Fall 2019 Grains West 22 ncreasing wheat yields in the Black Sea region of Russia and Ukraine may send chills down the spines of Canadian farmers, but those in the know say changes in global production spell opportunity, not catastrophe, for Canadian wheat farmers. “As the saying goes, wheat isn’t wheat. There are different types of wheats for different types of products,” said Geoff FEATURE I Backman, business development and markets manager for the Alberta Wheat Commission (AWC). While Russian wheat yields continue to set new records, Backman noted the vast majority of wheat produced in the Black Sea region is medium-protein winter wheat. Canada is known for its high- protein spring wheat. This creates an opportunity for Prairie farmers, he said, adding customers purchasing medium protein wheat often blend it with high- protein wheat to create their desired gluten strength. “If they want to produce products for, say, higher volume breads, they need to mix in some higher protein wheat,” said Backman. “And when they look around the world, Canada not only has very good high protein wheat, we have a lot of good attributes—our wheat is high-protein, with strong gluten, but also Canadian wheat sets sail on Russian and Ukrainian exports B l a c k S e a BY SHANNON VANRAES • PHOTOS BY GEOFF BACKMAN