MT: TAIWAN FLOUR MILLERS VISIT MONTANA
News Date October 06, 2009
Taiwan flour millers and government officials are visiting Montana this week as part of an agricultural goodwill mission.
Several representatives of the Taiwan Flour Mills Association are among the delegation, which arrived in Helena on September 29. Accompanying the group are officials from U.S. Wheat Associates and the Taipei Economic & Cultural Office in Seattle.
A joint communiqué was signed by Governor Brian Schweitzer and members of the delegation Tuesday in the Governor's Conference Room. U.S. Wheat Associates, the Montana Department of Agriculture and the Montana Wheat & Barley Committee hosted the group.
The delegation previously signed a letter of intent to purchase a total of 62.5 million bushels of wheat from the United States in 2010 and 2011. Historically, more than half of those purchases have been dark red wheat produced primarily in Montana and North Dakota. Wheat from several states is blended before it is shipped overseas, making it difficult to quantify exports specifically from Montana, notes Kim Falcon, Executive Vice President of the Montana Wheat & Barley Committee.
Taiwan is the seventh largest foreign buyer of U.S. wheat, and its flour millers are among the most quality-conscious buyers in the world, Falcon says.
While in Montana, the delegation plans to meet with wheat growers and industry officials. The purpose of the trip is to renew the long-standing friendships developed between the two countries over the years. (Contact: Ron Zellar, (406) 444-3144)