Record high for British wheat used for milling

Record high for home grown wheat used for milling
Record high for home grown wheat used for milling

The amount of home grown wheat used in British milling so far this season has reached the highest level on record, at 4.67Mt, according to the latest data published by Defra.

Wheat used by the British milling industry in the third quarter of the season (Jan-Mar) was 13 per cent up year on year at 1.71Mt.

Furthermore, this takes season to date (Jul-Mar) usage up to 5.35Mt, the largest amount of wheat milled at this point on records going back to 1997.

The UK is in a more unusual situation this season, according to Millie Askew, Analyst at AHDB Market Intelligence.

She said output is substantially lower on the year and domestic consumption is expected to increase.

February was the third month in a row where the UK was a net importer of wheat, following 14 consecutive months of being a net exporter.

Wheat meeting high quality bread milling specifications is at the highest proportion for 13 years.