IDAHO WHEAT COMMISSION

News

Genetics and Environment Study in Idaho

Alecia Kiszonas, Agricultural Research Services
In a regional, continuous project partially funded by the Idaho Wheat Commission, popular wheat varieties are tested for quality at the Western Wheat Quality Lab. This project seeks to obtain robust, statistically valid comparisons of the quality of new varieties and pre-release lines, including those from both private and public breeding programs and to build a database of quality data for different environments/regions of the PNW.

This project specifically addresses wheat production in Idaho.

The results of this study are being used now in several important ways which include, developing the 1) Preferred Variety list, 2) identifying ‘problem’ varieties that do not meet customer expectations for that market class, 3) the development of ‘Quality Targets’ for each market class through the PNW Wheat Quality Council, 4) encouraging growers to select superior quality varieties, 5) identification of superior varieties that can be used as benchmarks in breeding programs or quality targets for variety release, 6) opportunity to analyze quality on an environment- or region-specific basis.

April 9, 2024
U.S .Wheat Associates Sees Positive Outcome at WTO Ministerial Conference
To misquote Mark Twain, reports of the death of agricultural negotiations at the World Trade Organization (WTO) are exaggerated. That is a key message for the world’s wheat growers and buyers following the Thirteenth WTO Ministerial Conference (MC13) in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. “Going into MC13 negotiations, we did not want to see any backsliding on past progress made on agricultural commitments at the WTO,” said U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) Director of Trade Policy Peter Laudeman, who joined a coalition of U.S. agricultural representatives at the Conference. “Fortunately, the U.S. negotiating team and many other countries were able to hold firm, particularly against India’s protection of its trade-distorting wheat and rice policies.”
April 9, 2024
How does using SRC testing to improve wheat quality?
Because the quality and attributes of flour can vary by season and variety, it’s important for bakers to understand what works best in their products. One tool that can help them determine flour quality is Solvent Retention Capacity (SRC) testing, said Sean Finnie, director of the Western Wheat Quality Laboratory with the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Research Service. He is part of a team that works to improve wheat quality by identifying desirable traits, testing for them and working with breeders to enhance those traits.
April 9, 2024
Analyzing Idaho crop input costs and 2024 projections
Understanding what operating costs will look like in 2024 is crucial for farm businesses. This article provides a background discussion on categories of operating costs of the greatest importance for crops grown in Idaho and an assessment of the 2024 operating cost projections from the USDA Economic Research Service (ERS). The first part provides insights regarding the input prices that can have the greatest influence on a farm business’ profitability.
April 9, 2024
Snowpack improves in much of Idaho
A wet February and early March have boosted snowpacks in much of southern Idaho, where some flood-control operations are planned in coming weeks. Snowpack in the state’s northern areas remains below 30-year medians partly because the dominant El Nino weather pattern pushes Pacific storms south. An anticipated shift to La Nina patterns, expected in late summer and early fall, will bring more rain and snow in northern areas.
April 9, 2024
What's Holding Back U.S. Hard White Wheat in World Markets
A wheat variety introduced just 34 years ago shows great promise for United States wheat producers to better compete in world markets, if some challenges can be overcome. Hard white wheat was created as a distinct wheat class in 1990. A very close genetic cousin of hard red winter wheat, its main difference is that it lacks the red coloring in its endosperm. That red color imparts a taste to flour made with hard red winter wheat that some consider more “wheaty” or even bitter. Hard white wheat flour can have slightly less protein than hard red winter wheat, although its protein content is still much higher than traditional refined white flour.