Taiwan flour mills team visits Idaho

Idaho Wheat Commission news release

LEWISTON – A group representing the Taiwan Flour Mills Association came to the Lewis-Clark Valley Sept. 6-9 to see how Idaho wheat growers maintain a high-quality standard.

The TFMA team saw how wheat is tested, stored and prepared for delivery by barge on the Snake River.

The Idaho Wheat Commission and U.S. Wheat Associates sponsored the trip, which included tours of Uniontown Coop and the Lewis-Clark Terminal and dinner with Idaho Wheat Commissioner Joe Anderson, who farms in the Genesee area.

The Taiwan group also experienced the Lewiston Roundup for the first time as special guests of the board of directors, which included Idaho Wheat Commissioner Bill Flory, a North Idaho farmer.

“Idaho wheat growers are dedicated to producing high-quality harvests for international and domestic use,” said Blaine Jacobson, executive director of the IWC. “We look forward to hosting our friends and partners from Taiwan again later this month when they come to Boise.”

During the tour of the Lewis-Clark Terminal, a truck delivered 100,000 pounds of wheat with the truck’s front-end lifted into the air. While in the testing lab, the team watched as another truck had two samples taken to analyze the protein and moisture levels of the wheat transported by the truck.

The TFMA team also learned about the dam system on the Columbia-Snake River, including how the system is more efficient and environmentally friendly than shipping wheat by rail or truck.

The TFMA group departed Lewiston for Portland and Seattle. Following a trip to Washington, D.C., they will meet with Idaho Gov. Brad Little as part of a Taiwan Goodwill Mission.

The Taiwan Goodwill Mission will then sign a letter of intent for the purchase of wheat at negotiated rates between 2020 and 2021. Details are forthcoming with a formal announcement at a press conference with Little.

Taiwan imported nearly $4.3 billion worth of U.S. farm products in 2018. The country is the fifth-largest market for U.S. wheat.