Food Business News - March 12, 2013 - 50

Ingredient Markets
Market commentary for one-week period ended March 8, 2013

Bakery Flour
Bookings of bakery flour were steady
last week. Price changes were mixed.
Declining wheat futures prices and
concerns about strengthening cash wheat
premiums helped generate various forms
of baker activity in flour markets. Bakers
in recent months have steadily extended
or added to their coverage of the futures
component of prospective flour bookings
for the second and third quarters of 2013,
and bakers continued to do so last week.
Advancing cash wheat premiums and ideas
that slumping wheat futures prices might
have the effect of further strengthening
the cash wheat basis, which increasingly
was required to bear a heavier burden in
originating wheat, encouraged individual
bakers to cover the basis component of some
prospective flour bookings. Basis coverage
was taken mostly for April-June, but some
bakers covered basis as far forward as
December. There also were indications
some bakers were covering millfeed credits
for the second and even third quarters.
The upshot of this component activity
when combined with flat bookings,
which also were indicated last week, was
to raise bread bakers’ commitments to
second-quarter flour contracts to 75%
of the potential flour volume. Baker
commitments to July-September flour
contracts (including completed contracts
and prospective contracts for which
one or more component was yet to be
covered) increased to between 30% and
35% of the expected volume for the quarter.

Bakery ﬂour
— Change from — Year
March 8 March 1 Feb. 22 ago
Kansas City
Bakers short patent
Bakers standard patent
Second clear
Third clear
Minneapolis
Spring short patent
Spring standard patent
High gluten
Whole wheat
Specialty whole wheat
Fancy spring clear
First spring clear
Rye, white
Chicago
Cracker
Fancy cake
New York
Winter/spring blend
Spring standard patent
High gluten
Fancy cake
Rye, white
Los Angeles
Bakers standard patent
Pastry

FOODBUSINESS NEWS

Family Flour
Sales of national and regional brands of
family flour began to increase with grocers
preparing to stock shelves in advance of
Easter, which falls on March 31 this year.
Carlot list prices were unchanged.
Manufacturers indicated Easter-related
flour promotions may include shelf offers
of two 5-lb bags for $5.
It was expected after grocers fully stock
their shelves for Easter that volume in the
family flour market will fall quickly and revert
to the routine through the spring and summer.
In the market for private label flour, most
buyers earlier covered their needs through
May, but they continued to hold back from
taking significant coverage in the summer
in the hope wheat prices continued to trend
lower. FBN

Semolina
Bookings of semolina, granulars and
durum flour were steady last week. Prices
edged higher.
The price of choice milling hard amber
durum quoted as a delivered Chicago/
beyond value was $10 a bu, up 20c from
a week earlier, in limited trading. The

Minneapolis price was $9.70 a bu. With
wheat futures prices on the decline once
again, particularly Minneapolis spring
wheat futures, ideas were durum prices
may resume trending lower in the weeks
ahead. Cash durum prices have dropped
30c a bu since the beginning of 2013, while
the Minneapolis May wheat future has
dropped around 67c a bu.
Durum millers and pasta manufacturers
hoped the relative strength in cash durum
prices versus spring wheat and other grain
prices will encourage northern Plains
producers to seed more area to durum this
spring. They noted that was not the case
with regard to durum producers in Arizona
and California, who seed their durum in the
fall and winter and harvest their crop in May.
Area planted to durum in the desert states for
harvest this year was estimated at 170,000
acres, down 31% from 245,000 acres in 2012.
The first survey-based indications of northern
Plains producers’ planting intentions will
be contained in the U.S. Department of
Agriculture’s Prospective Plantings report,
which will be issued on March 28.
Pasta makers earlier covered their
semolina requirements through March,
and April-June coverage increased to
about 60%. Coverage for July-September
remained light. FBN

Bakers standard, Kansas City
Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt
$26.00
$23.00
$20.00

No. 1 hard amber durum

Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt

50

Cookie-cracker and specialty bakers
continued to hold slightly more extensive
coverage than the bread bakers.
Kansas City mill grind was 5½ days last
week, Upper Midwest and Central states
grind was 5½ to 6½ days with Northeast at
five to six days. FBN

19.10
19.00
14.00
…

-0.05
-0.05
—
...

0.15
0.15
—
...

18.90
18.80
14.00
…

19.65
19.55
22.55
19.55
19.90
19.40
19.30
21.50

1.15
1.15
1.15
1.15
1.15
1.15
1.15
0.35

20.15
20.05
23.05
20.05
20.40
19.90
19.80
19.95

15.60
17.10

-0.25
-0.25

-0.10
-0.10

15.00
16.50

21.50
22.30
25.30
19.10
24.00

-0.05
0.65
0.65
-0.25
0.10

0.15
0.80
0.80
-0.10
0.35

21.30
22.40
25.40
18.50
22.45

24.55
24.00

®

0.90
0.90
0.90
0.90
0.90
0.90
0.90
0.10

-0.05
-0.05

0.15
0.15

22.25
22.25

$17.00

Track, Minneapolis
— Change from — Year
$ per bu
March 8 March 1 Feb. 22 ago
Choice milling 13% 9.70
+.20
+.10
9.95
cents per bu
Amber discount
10.00
—
—
10.00
Durum discount 10@40
—
—
10@40
Pufﬁng premium
0
—
—
0

$14.00
M

J

S
Previous Year

D
Current Year

Spring standard, Minneapolis
Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt
$33.00
$29.00

Semolina
Bulk, f.o.b. Minneapolis, $ per cwt
— Change from —
March 8 March 1 Feb. 22
Semolina
22.40 +.55
+.50
Granulars
22.20 +.55
+.50
Flour
22.10 +.55
+.50
First clear
17.50
—
—
Second clear 13.00
—
—
Semolina - N.Y. 25.10 +.55
+.50

$25.00

Year
ago
23.75
23.55
23.45
17.50
13.00
26.45

Nationally advertised family ﬂour

$21.00
$17.00
$13.00
M

J

S
Previous Year

D
Current Year

Cracker ﬂour, Chicago
Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt

$22.00

Dollars
March
Family patent, 2-25s papers 24.12
4-10s
n.a.
8-5s
18.52
18-2s
20.64
Self-rising
n.a.

$20.00

Year ago
24.12
n.a.
18.62
20.64
n.a.

$18.00
$16.00
$14.00
$12.00
M

J

S
Previous Year

D
Current Year

March 12, 2013
Food Business News - March 12, 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Food Business News - March 12, 2013
