Taiwan could emerge as a significant market for Australian wheat
- By: "Farm Tender" News
- Cattle News
- May 21, 2018
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Taiwan could emerge as a significant market for Australian wheat, as awareness of the quality of Aussie grain grows among local flour millers.
Currently, Taiwan averages about 230,000 tonnes in Australian wheat imports each year, worth about $80 million.
AEGIC CEO Richard Simonaitis said nearly half of this was used for noodles – mainly yellow alkaline and white salted noodles* – and there was room to grow this market segment.
“We know our customers like Australian wheat because of its low moisture content, white bran coat and high flour yield,” she said.
“These qualities result in noodles with excellent colour and texture which is why Australian wheat is so well suited to a wide range of noodles.”
AEGIC took this message directly to Taiwanese flour millers as part of an Australian Wheat Seminar in Taipei, presented in conjunction with Austrade. The seminar, held on Tuesday May 15, was the 4th in a series of similar AEGIC events in Taipei in recent years and was attended by around 70 delegates, including all the major flour milling companies of Taiwan.
Mr Simonaitis said the seminar focused on communicating the suitability of Australian wheat classes Australian Prime Hard and Australian Hard for noodles and Chinese wheat flour based products such as dumplings and steam buns.
“Taiwan is an important and growing market for Australian wheat, and we expect the excellent relationship between the Australian wheat industry and the Taiwan flour milling industry to continue,” he said.
“The Australian wheat industry is committed to continual improvement to meet customer needs. AEGIC and other organisations are well-placed to work with Taiwanese flour millers to help maximise the value of Australian wheat.”
The seminar was officially opened by Australian Office Representative Mr Gary Cowan and Secretary General of the Taiwan Flour Mills Association Mr Chen Re-Shiang.
Mr Simonaitis was joined in Taipei by AEGIC Wheat Quality Technical Markets Manager Dr Larisa Cato, who presented a technical overview of Australian wheat including how to get the best out of our grain.
Attendees at the seminar also learned about the value of Australian wheat for Asian-style baking, and had the opportunity to taste noodles made from Australian wheat.
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