With the 2024 harvest now virtually complete, I write today to update you on the situation and what it will mean for bakers. Before we get into that, however, let me share something altogether more magical, a few images of Fosters Mill bathed in the Aurora Borealis display we experienced last week. It was a night I will never forget, something I have wanted to experience all my life!
Wheat & Grain Update 2024
The situation is best described as “challenging”!
Milling Wheat
The organic wheat harvest, and indeed, the conventional wheat harvest has been diabolical, both in terms of quantity and quality. Whilst there is some variation in different regions, overall, yields (the tonnage of wheat per acre) are some of the lowest for many years. This is further compounded by the fact that a much smaller acerage of land was sown in autumn / winter 2023 and spring 2024 due to the extreme wet weather which meant land in many parts of the country was unworkable. The growing conditions during 2024 for both winter-sown and spring-sown wheats were also unfavorable. All this has resulted in a situation where very few parcels of wheat (both organic and conventional) have made milling grade.
For bread making, we need protein levels >12%, ideally, over 13% (your current flour is 13.5%). We need bushel weights (a volumetric weight which indicates how filled the grains are with starch) of over 75kg. So far, I have seen not a single sample of UK grown 2024 harvest organic wheat over 12% protein (with most between 9 and 11%) and bushel weights are in the low 70s.
The net result of this is that we are most likely to try and source both UK grown and imported high protein wheat and create a blend to give you the baking qualities / properties and flavour you have come to expect from the Priors Flour. That will be the only likely way we can offer a quality product for you from the 2024 harvest. As of today, we are still milling the 2023 harvest grain and expect to transition to the 2024 harvest during December. Order your flour here!
Rye
I am pleased to say, the situation as regards rye is more promising! We have now taken delivery of an excellent parcel of rye grain grown near Boston in Lincolnshire. The berries are plump, the taste is excellent and the flour soft! We have worked to keep our prices down, so please crack-on and order – it is in production and you can order it here!
Spelt
Spelt has also been affected in a similar way to milling wheat. We are currently sourcing new crop, so I will update you once we have secured our supply for the coming 12 months. We do not anticipate a challenge getting suitable spelt grain, but again, yields are down and supply is limited – this is likely to impact price.
Heritage Wheat – Millers Choice
Again, the harvest was extremely poor and much of the crop grown by our key supplier was not suitable for milling. We do, however, expect to get enough grain to keep our Millers Choice customers baking over the coming 12 months!
I will keep you updated as we finalise our wheats and grains for 2024 – 2025.
Jon Cook.
