Miller Magazine Issue 107 / November 2018

34 MILLER / NOVEMBER 2018 NEWS World food prices slipped in September from the month before, with only sugar posting a rise, the Uni- ted Nations food agency said. The Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) food price index, which measures monthly changes for a basket of cereals, oilseeds, dairy products, meat and sugar, averaged 165.4 points last month, against a marginally revised 167.7 in August. The August figure was previously given as 167.6. FAO said global cereals output in 2018 was seen at 2.591 billion tonnes, up three million tonnes on the previous forecast given in September, but still down 63 million tonnes, or 2.4 percent, from 2017’s record production level. FAO’s forecast for world wheat production in 2018 was almost unchanged on 722.4 million tonnes, the smallest since 2013. The U.N. body’s Cereal Price Index averaged almost 164 points in September, down 2.8 percent from August. Among the major cereals, maize export quotations registered the sharpest month-on- month decline down some 4 percent, mostly on expe- ctations of a very large crop in the United States and good supply prospects globally. Wheat price quotations also fell, mainly on continued strong sales and ship- ments from Russia. By contrast, the FAO Sugar Price Index averaged 161.4 points last month, up 2.6 percent from August. FAO said the increase was largely linked to the ongoing harvesting in Brazil, the world’s largest sugar producer and exporter.“Drought conditions in Brazil during the critical growing season are seen to have had negative impacts on sugarcane yields, with harvested cane volu- mes falling below expectations,” FAO said UK bakery group Hovis has struck a deal to sell two of its mills and outlined plans to close another, after an- nouncing a £11.7m loss after tax. Hovis Ltd said up to 71 jobs would go with the mill closure in Southampton, while sites in Manchester and Selby would transfer to Whitworth Bros Ltd. The company’s fourth mill, in Wel- lingborough in central England, will remain. The “sig- nificantly loss-making” Southampton mill, at Western Docks in the city, will close at the end of the year, the firm said. Wellingborough mill will continue to supply flour to the Hovis brand. The company also said warehouse and logistics ope- rations in DHL Bawtry, DHL Southampton and DSV Belfast will cease at the end of the year. The company employs about 3,500 people at 19 UK sites, produ- cing Hovis, Mothers Pride and supermarket-branded products. Chief executive Nish Kankiwala said, “ We are com- mitted to our strategy of becoming the best quality brand in baking and will focus our investment on our core baking business. As a result, we have taken the decision to exit three milling sites, and to integrate Wellingborough Mill into the Hovis baking supply cha- in, ensuring the continued delivery of high-quality flour to the Hovis brand.” Kankiwala added: “Going forward, there is no doubt the bread market will remain extremely chal- lenging. However, we are confident our strategy to become a focused, fully-integrated manufacturer of bakery products will allow us to further strengthen our successful business.” FAO Food Price Index down in September UK wheat miller Hovis to sell two mills