01/02/07 Japanese interest in food barley

Farm and Ranch January 2, 2007 On a recent U.S. Grains Council sponsored trip to Japan, Idaho barley grower Ron Elkin saw the interest of the Japanese in barley for food uses. Elkin: "They are interested in our FDA health claim on barley. They are discovering ways to work that into their marketing system right now, so they were interested with what we have been doing with it and trying to utilize it in their system." In May of 2006 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration finalized a rule that allows foods containing barley to claim they reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. Elkin says the Japanese mix barley in with rice. Elkin: "Rice is expensive and barley is an inexpensive filler essentially." Elkin says the northwest can get it's foot in the door with the varieties it has but there will be many more opportunities down the road with new barley varieties with higher beta glucans. Elkin is as malting barley grower and he thinks that type of contract growing could be a model for food barley production for Japan and other potential customers. Elkin: "We would like to see some forward contracts and stuff like that. It would be good for the growers that way." The U.S. Grains Council mission Elkin was on also visited Taiwan. In addition to food barley, Elkin, a member of the Idaho Barley Commission, says they were also promoting Pacific Northwest malting and feed barleys. Mary Palmer Sullivan of the Washington Barley Commission was also on that trip. I'm Bob Hoff and that's the Northwest Farm and Ranch Report on the Northwest Ag Information Network.