A disappointing trip to Egypt

Farm and Ranch June 4, 2009 Egypt is an important swing market for soft white wheat. However, Egypt has purchased very little soft white the past two marketing years. In fact, it bought none in the recently concluded 2008/2009 marketing period. On a trip to Egypt this spring Washington Wheat Commission CEO Tom Mick didn’t find anything that would likely change the country’s purchasing pattern. He called it a discouraging visit.

Mick: “Because of the cheap wheat from the Black Sea area they said it was highly doubtful that any U.S. wheat will be imported into Egypt and if it is, it will be the cheapest wheat. That would be soft red winter from the Gulf and east coast. They have the lowest bid policy meaning no matter what the quality of the wheat is, or where it is from, if it is the cheapest bid they have to take it. That is bad news. We are stepping up our educational program to say quality is a very important issue. You cannot jeopardize this with your population. We can offer you quality. Please consider us in the future. We will keep up that message until we are successful.”

Some recent shipments to Egypt of Russian wheat were so poor in quality the Egyptians quarantined them. But even so Mick says;

Mick: “The Russians are very adept at making special deals. I don‘t know how this whole thing will work out, but in the near future it looks kind of bleak in Egypt.”

I’m Bob Hoff and that’s the Northwest Farm and Ranch Report on the Northwest Ag Information Network.