12/18/08 The Wide World of Wheat from the Washington Wheat Commission

Washington Ag December 18, 2008 Anchor: And now from the Washington Wheat Commission comes "The wide world of wheat" grain industry headlines from around the world. Reader: The Australian government is introducing a monthly market information publication to help its wheat farmers as they transition to a competitive export marketing system. The first report, produced by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics will be published in February 2009. Chinese officials have announced their intention to produce more than 95 percent of their grain needs for the next decade. The Chinese believe it is important to be grain self-sufficient. Ukraine opened a new grain terminal. The new facility will be able to load 10 thousand metric tons of grain per day, helping the country reach its goal of being able to export 26 million metric tons of grain per year. Cuba has signed a deal with the Canadian Wheat Board to buy 150 thousand metric tons of wheat in 2009. The president of the Cuban food import agency said the island nation will spend a record $2.4 billion dollars on food imports this year, up $700 million over last year. I'm Bob Hoff. Anchor: The Washington Wheat Commission wants growers and citizens alike to understand their industry has global reach. A pebble thrown anywhere in the world of grain is felt as ripples by Washington's 13,000 growers and their landlords.