WINNIPEG (Staff) – Canadian processors appreciate the high quality of wheat and barley. But they also think the system pumps out too much of a good thing.
Gordon Harrison said the Canadian National Millers Association is besieged with requests for low-quality Canadian flour. He said some export customers can use it to blend with their even lower grades to improve quality.
But Harrison said it’s often hard for millers to get anything other than high quality wheat, which many customers don’t need and won’t pay for.
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“In some crop years, processors can be blessed with too much quality, when lower protein levels and grades are in short supply,” added Howard Rowley, chair of the millers’ group.
Gordon Love said the baking industry needs more choice in quality, “not just the best all the time.”
Identity-preserved programs for varieties like Grandin would help bakers be more flexible in setting prices for customers who are increasingly cost-conscious, said Love, who is in charge of purchasing for Weston Bakeries.
Keith Potter, an official with Canada Malting Co. Ltd., said the grading system doesn’t work for all customers. Some need to buy barley according to protein levels or plumpness rather than visual characteristics.
