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amber durum wheat, 77,000 tonnes of
other western wheat, 463,000 tonnes
of Ontario winter wheat and 168,000
tonnes of other eastern Canadian wheat,
adding up to over three million tonnes in
total. During the 2011–12 marketing year,
a total of 2.6 million
tonnes were milled.
The Canadian
National Millers
Association says that,
across the country,
mills process about
3.1 million tonnes of
Canadian wheat a
year. Approximately
75 per cent of that is grown in Western
Canada, with the remainder mostly
coming out of Ontario, but from
Quebec and the Atlantic Provinces
as well.
From the total processed, about 2.4
million tonnes is for human consumption,
with the balance going for animal feed
and non-food products. While dependent
on North American market values of
cereal grains, the value of Canadian wheat
exports is approximately $1.2 billion a
year, with about $300 million in value-
added products.
While wheat remains the flour
frontrunner, market trends show that it
makes good business sense to branch
into alternative markets.
Brian Hinton, owner of Calgary's
Lakeview Bakery, said supplying his two
stores with specialty flours like spelt,
kamut and quinoa can be challenging
because these products are largely
sourced from outside of Canada. He
added that ingredients like flours made
from food barley, lentils and chickpeas
are not easy to get, either, even though
they’re home grown.
“An inconsistent supply is the biggest
obstacle,” he
explained.
Still, demand for
alternative products
has been exponential
for Hinton,
expanding from three
varieties of gluten-
free products in 1996
to over 250 today.
Frank Sarro, purchasing manager with
Community Natural Foods in Calgary,
has witnessed the same rapid and
steady increase in demand during the
last several years. Today, the selection at
Community Natural Foods is diverse and
includes dozens of rice and bean flours,
as well as premade products.
“There’s high demand,” Sarro said,
pointing out that as medical diagnoses
of celiac disease increase, patients are
arriving at his stores armed with a list of
foods they’re no longer able to eat and
looking for help. Salespeople become
educators and help customers through
the initial stages.
As a purchaser, though, Sarro sees
gaps in the supply chain with flours and
organics. Amember of the national
Organic Value Chain Roundtable, he
said there is certainly a production
and capacity issue in Canada as far as
supplying organics.
“We need to attract more producers;
we are definitely seeing capacity issues,”
he said.
And while some farmers balk at the
paperwork involved in Canada's organic
certification, Sarro points out that
virtually every step of agriculture involves
paperwork—fromgetting Hazard Analysis
and Critical Control Points (HACCP)
approved, to selling to co-operatives,
to elevator sales. Creating that trail, he
explains, is a key to successful business.
“Paperwork is going to pay you,” he
stated, pointing out that farmers need
differentiation to gain a premiumprice.
Back at the flour research level,
Izydorczyk sees only opportunities ahead
for the alternative flour industry in Canada.
For barley, for instance, new seed
varieties of edible, hulled barley are in
development. And as research continues,
now is also the time for promotion.
“This is the time to promote this barley
for food uses. It is happening,” she said.
grainswest.com
“We need to attract
more producers; we
are definitely seeing
capacity issues.”
–Frank Sarro
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