Excellent Year for Hard Red Wheat Quality

The now complete 2014 USW Hard Red Winter (HRW) quality survey details a crop with good wheat protein that translates into high flour protein content and very good functionality. Water absorption and loaf volumes are very good and exceed the five-year averages. This year's crop meets or exceeds typical HRW contract specifications and should provide a high value to customers. U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) posts all final crop quality reports on its website at www.uswheat.org/cropQuality 

Across the HRW production area, from Texas to Montana and into in the states of Idaho and Washington, moisture was the most influential quality factor for this crop. Soil moisture heading into dormancy was generally adequate and the crop was in good condition by early spring. However, the rain virtually stopped until the crop was mature in areas from central Kansas south to Oklahoma and Texas. The drought conditions reduced yield and stressed the crop in those areas. Moving north, widespread rain that began in June initially was beneficial to yields and crop development. Rain continued, however, delaying harvest and reducing quality in some northern areas. Harvest began in Texas in late May and extended into early September in the northern states.

Overall test weight averaged 60.7 lbs/bu (79.9 kg/hl), which is well above the 2013 average of 59.9 lbs/bu (78.8 kg/hl) and equal to the five-year average of 60.8 lbs/bu (79.9 kg/hl). Kernel characteristics are similar to long-term averages, with significantly lower shrunken and broken kernels compared to last year and to the five-year average. Average wheat protein of 13.3 percent is similar to the 2013 average of 13.4 percent and almost one percentage point above the five-year average of 12.4 percent. The average falling number is 385, down somewhat from the five-year average of 410, but still indicative of a sound crop that is generally free of sprout damage.

Flour protein averages 12.3 percent, which is 1.5 percentage points above the five-year average. The average Buhler lab mill extraction is 73.9 percent, well above the five-year average of 72.7 percent. Farinograph stability time is slightly lower than the five-year average of 12.6 minutes, and water absorption is two percentage points higher than last year’s 60.4 percent for high protein. Overall loaf volume averages 859 cc, which is comparable to last year’s average of 860 cc and exceeds the five-year average of 816 cc. Alveograph “W” value, water absorption, farinograph development and stability times, and loaf volume all suggest that the protein quality and quantity present in the 2014 HRW crop is excellent.