Northwest wheat industry expects food aid demand to increase

"I expect the need for international food assistance to continue and grow," said Amanda Hoey, Oregon Wheat CEO and chair of the food aid working group for U.S. Wheat Associates and the National Association of Wheat Growers.

"The primary underlying causes of the need —  particularly natural disasters and conflict-related displacement — are unchanged or are even more dire, depending on the situation," she said.

Food programs are encountering increasingly complex situations requiring multi-year responses for humanitarian food aid relief to address severe food insecurity, Hoey said.

During each of the past three years, the U.S. has shipped more than 1 million metric tons of wheat as in-kind food assistance, Chumrau said.

In 2022, that amount totaled 38.5 million bushels, including more than 18 million bushels of soft white wheat from the Pacific Northwest.

The soft white wheat was primarily destined for Yemen, Chumrau said.

"These in-kind donations generally try and match the class of wheat that is most appropriate for the type of foods and cultural aspects of the countries that need it," Chumrau said.

Ethiopia is another main destination for U.S. grain, primarily hard red winter wheat, Hoey said.

Wheat shipped as food aid is purchased at market value, just as with any other commercial sale, Chumrau said.

"It's very significant for our sales," she said.

Over the last decade, soft white wheat food aid shipments have represented between 5% and  10% of total sales, Chumrau said.

Food aid does not displace any other sales, she said.

Whether it's better to use cash donations or commodity donations is a "continual discussion," Hoey said.

"While there is a role for both, the importance of maintaining commodities in the mix is essential," she said.

In conflict areas, commodity donations can mean better oversight and assurance it will reach those in need, she said. In areas impacted by natural disasters where availability is already a challenge, it gets quality and nutritious food on site.

"Over time, there has been some eroding of commodity in preference for cash donation, as it is easier for some of the implementing partners to use cash, but it is not always better for those receiving the donation, which is what should be forefront in the mind from a policy standpoint," Hoey said.

Previously, dollars through the American Rescue Plan and the Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust assisted in the use of wheat for food aid, with funding from the USDA Commodity Credit Corp. helping cover the cost of transportation.