Milling & Baking News - November 16, 2004 - 6

E D I T O R I A L

K-State seeks to revive essential role for industry

hen announcement was made earlier this year
that Virgil W. Smail had been named to head
the Department of Grain Science and Industry
at Kansas State University, a noticeable stream of happy
anticipation coursed through grain-based foods. Now
that Dr. Smail has been in full charge of the department
for nearly three months, the hope of a "new day" for the
university and the relations with its major industry constituents in flour milling, baking and feed manufacturing
has been quickly addressed. Not only has Dr. Smail
reinvigorated the department's teaching and research
staff, but he has launched or has in the planning stage
numerous steps meant to put the department front and
center in serving grain-based foods. Without criticizing
the department's former path, which at times seemed to
neglect the industry, Dr. Smail leaves no doubt of his intent to restore K-State and its "milling and baking school"
to a central role in advancing grain-based foods.
Hardly anything defines Dr. Smail's ideas better
than the strategic planning session recently held on the
K.S.U. campus. Attended by industry leaders, these several days focused on assuring that the programs of the
Department of Grain Science and Industry meshed as
closely as possible to the needs of the companies and the
industry. As Paul Abenante, president of the American
Bakers Association, observed, "These programs and renewed curriculum initiatives are extremely impressive
and will serve as an excellent resource for grain-based
foods." Similar positive assessments were heard from
milling leaders who agreed the department ought to be
central to educating future industry executives.
Particularly positive in the strategy sessions was that
neither university nor industry sought to declare a single
way best to accomplish the mutually-agreed goals. When
it comes to increasing enrollment, which is one of the department's most urgent needs in view of recent precipitous
declines, attention centers on how to attract students from
outside Kansas, how to train and instill a suitable work ethic,
how to increase the number of minority candidates, and
how best to prepare students for an industry operating in an
increasingly global environment. While it is agreed that the
department's core focus on teaching technical milling skills

must be emphasized, industry executives also endorsed the
need to broaden the curriculum to provide more attention to
leadership and communications skills, and even marketing.
When it comes to research, a particular interest of Dr.
Smail, the department makes the case for basic studies
along lines not pursued by most corporate research units.
The department suggests that its research focus should be
"primarily in areas where the industry benefits over an
individual company." Examples of the latter include food
safety and security, as well as human safety.
Participants in the strategic planning session also saw
firsthand the university's commitment to rebuilding and
reinvigorating the department. Not only did they hear the
K-State president, Jon Wefald, declare his personal commitment to the department's ambitious targets by saying,
"There is no limit to what can be accomplished here," but
they also saw how the 16-acre site for the new grain science complex is progressing. Ground was broken for the
construction of the new teaching and research flour mill,
and the dedication was held for the new Bioprocessing
and Industrial Value Added Program building. The latter's role is described by Dr. Smail as conducting research
"focused on turning Kansas crops into value-added
products and to test new processes used to produce new
grain-based food and non-food products."
Millions have been committed to the three buildings,
either completed or under construction (the first was
headquarters for the International Grains Program), with
funding from various sources - federal and state governments, wheat farmers, foundations and individuals as well
as companies. In these days of tight governmental budgets,
particularly for education, Dr. Smail leaves no doubt but
that achieving the goals of the Department of Grain Science
and Industry requires increased support from industry.
New scholarship funding and research sponsorships are
immediate needs. By reaching out in a positive way to the
industry, Dr. Smail and Kansas State University have taken
the steps that ought to bring success. In seeking a positive
response to these thoughtful initiatives, they are asking
the industry to approve and to embrace the concept that
university-level education and research continue essential
to the well-being of grain-based foods.

Wheat need not take backseat to corn and soybeans

n looking at crop production this year, the temptation is great to relegate wheat to a less impressive
showing than the astounding outturns of corn and
soybeans. It is hard not to look with awe on the 2004
corn crop, at 11,613 million bushels and soybeans at
3,107 million, but it also would be wrong to overlook
how wheat production has held up in the United States
and has surged globally. This year's U.S. wheat crop, at
2,164 million bushels, is 600 million below the record set
in 1981. Yet, it marks the second successive crop that is
large enough to allow for an increase in ending stocks.
Indeed, the carryover of wheat at the close of 2004-05 is
projected to rise to 569 million bushels from 547 million
at the season's start, casting into the past the memory
of 2002-03 when ending stocks fell to nearly 400 million
bushels, and concern ruled about the supply.
Accentuating the adequacy of the U.S. crop, for domestic needs and to fill the current pace of export demand is
the dramatic rise in world production. The latest estimate

bakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com

by the Foreign Agricultural Service places the world
wheat crop at 616 million tonnes. That is up 64 million
from the prior year in the largest annual increase ever
recorded. This year's outturn is only the second world
wheat harvest in excess of 600 million tonnes. Many
countries contributed to this global record, notably the
European Union and the nations along the Black Sea.
Such a huge crop increase on a global basis has prompted a new record in world disappearance, estimated by
the F.A.S. at 605 million tonnes, against 586 million in
the previous year. Most of that gain is occurring in food
use, which continues to rise in many developing nations.
Contrast that with the situation in America, where food
use in 2004-05, while up barely 1 per cent from the previous season, still is short of the record domestic wheat
food use of 950 million in 2000-01. With the excellent soil
moisture start for the 2005 winter wheat crop, the grainbased foods industry needs to find a way of matching
consumption to the abundant crop potential. MBN
Milling & Baking News, November 16, 2004 / 7

http://www.bakingbusiness.com http://www.world-grain.com

Milling & Baking News - November 16, 2004

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Milling & Baking News - November 16, 2004