by
Rhiannon White, Managing Editor, Milling and Grain
A view from: The President of the European Flour Millers Brexit, consumer trends and authenticity
As Brexit continues to dominate the British and European political stage, Bernard Valluis, President of the European Flour Millers says, “Within our Association, we believe that today’s priority is the continuation of the current trade flows for flour and flour-based products without tariffs on both sides.”
The European Flour Millers association is a federation of 29 countries, 24 from the European Union and five associate members including Turkey, the world’s leading flour exporter.
“We process 45 million tonnes of grains every year, have direct employment for 45,000 people and we are producing 35 million tonnes of flour and probably 600 different kinds of flour”, he added.
The EU is a highly regulated environment for flour millers with a heavy focus on health and food safety. This includes date marking and monitoring of nutrition and health claims, agricultural policy, competition rules, more transparency in the internal market and finally improving sustainability, energy efficiency and waste.
Mr Valluis commented, “The EU is also the leader for the wheat production market with between 140 and 150 million tonnes produced in 2017-18, followed by China (128.3 tonnes), India (95.5 tonnes) and then Russia (67 tonnes).”
Brexit
Most striking are the statistics that reflect the staunch and intertwined relationship held between the EU and UK wheat, flour and bakery markets. “In 2015-16, the UK exported 2.2 million tonnes of wheat to the EU-27, mainly to The Netherlands, Spain and Portugal, whilst the EU-27 normally exports around 0.6 tonnes to the UK.
“The UK exports around 220,000 tonnes of flour per year to the EU-27, mainly to the Republic of Ireland with a value of €95 million. Whilst the UK also exports around 270,000 tonnes of bakery products per year to the EU-27; half of which goes to the Republic of Ireland, with a value of €650m.”
Despite the overwhelming interdependence between the EU and UK markets as they stand, if tariffs were to be introduced following a trade deal, it would be difficult to foresee how the current symbiosis could be sustained.
Rest of the world
“Turkey is the leader for the wheat flour market, exporting five million tonnes per year to 140 destinations. The main destination for its flour exports is Iraq, followed by the Middle East and Africa while it is declining for East Asia,” Mr Valluis added.
Consumer trends and challenges
He says that consumers today are paying close attention to wasted losses, health and origin. “Some want gluten-free only products, so no wheat at all, which is a real concern for the new generation of consumption standards to make sure in the future we are not going to face a very large drop in consumption.”
“From the point of view of the miller, tomorrow’s challenges include long shelf life, storage, dosage and recipes. From the point of view of the consumer, the challenges are freshness, authenticity, the origin and organic nature of the product.”
He concluded by saying, “The new challenges for our sector also include digitalisation and ‘B2C’ relationships with the consumer.”
To keep updated on the progress being made, be sure to register for The European Flour Millers conference on ‘Semolina & Pasta Manufacturers’, taking place in Prague on May 24-26, 2018.
Read the full article, HERE.
A view from: The President of the European Flour Millers Brexit, consumer trends and authenticity
As Brexit continues to dominate the British and European political stage, Bernard Valluis, President of the European Flour Millers says, “Within our Association, we believe that today’s priority is the continuation of the current trade flows for flour and flour-based products without tariffs on both sides.”
The European Flour Millers association is a federation of 29 countries, 24 from the European Union and five associate members including Turkey, the world’s leading flour exporter.
“We process 45 million tonnes of grains every year, have direct employment for 45,000 people and we are producing 35 million tonnes of flour and probably 600 different kinds of flour”, he added.
The EU is a highly regulated environment for flour millers with a heavy focus on health and food safety. This includes date marking and monitoring of nutrition and health claims, agricultural policy, competition rules, more transparency in the internal market and finally improving sustainability, energy efficiency and waste.
Mr Valluis commented, “The EU is also the leader for the wheat production market with between 140 and 150 million tonnes produced in 2017-18, followed by China (128.3 tonnes), India (95.5 tonnes) and then Russia (67 tonnes).”
Brexit
Most striking are the statistics that reflect the staunch and intertwined relationship held between the EU and UK wheat, flour and bakery markets. “In 2015-16, the UK exported 2.2 million tonnes of wheat to the EU-27, mainly to The Netherlands, Spain and Portugal, whilst the EU-27 normally exports around 0.6 tonnes to the UK.
“The UK exports around 220,000 tonnes of flour per year to the EU-27, mainly to the Republic of Ireland with a value of €95 million. Whilst the UK also exports around 270,000 tonnes of bakery products per year to the EU-27; half of which goes to the Republic of Ireland, with a value of €650m.”
Despite the overwhelming interdependence between the EU and UK markets as they stand, if tariffs were to be introduced following a trade deal, it would be difficult to foresee how the current symbiosis could be sustained.
Rest of the world
“Turkey is the leader for the wheat flour market, exporting five million tonnes per year to 140 destinations. The main destination for its flour exports is Iraq, followed by the Middle East and Africa while it is declining for East Asia,” Mr Valluis added.
Consumer trends and challenges
He says that consumers today are paying close attention to wasted losses, health and origin. “Some want gluten-free only products, so no wheat at all, which is a real concern for the new generation of consumption standards to make sure in the future we are not going to face a very large drop in consumption.”
“From the point of view of the miller, tomorrow’s challenges include long shelf life, storage, dosage and recipes. From the point of view of the consumer, the challenges are freshness, authenticity, the origin and organic nature of the product.”
He concluded by saying, “The new challenges for our sector also include digitalisation and ‘B2C’ relationships with the consumer.”
To keep updated on the progress being made, be sure to register for The European Flour Millers conference on ‘Semolina & Pasta Manufacturers’, taking place in Prague on May 24-26, 2018.
Read the full article, HERE.
The Global Miller
This blog is maintained by The Global Miller staff and is supported by the magazine Milling and Grain
which is published by Perendale Publishers Limited.
For additional daily news from milling around the world: global-milling.com
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