Cleaner Wheat Sought by USDA

June 23, 2000

Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman says USDA has taken two new steps designed to make U.S. wheat more competitive in world markets by encouraging the export of cleaner wheat. He said USDA immediately will raise the standard for cleanliness of wheat purchased for U.S. foreign food assistance programs by reducing the level of dockage permitted.

Dockage includes all matter other than wheat that must be removed prior to milling the wheat into flour. USDA's Commodity Credit Corporation purchases for government donation programs historically have been at the 1% dockage level, the level often used for U.S. commercial purchases. USDA will require a dockage level of 0.8% or less for future wheat purchases for foreign food assistance.

USDA's Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) measures and reports dockage on each export shipment, but the actual level is determined contractually between buyer and seller. USDA also will request public comments on a proposal to establish an official U.S. standard for maximum dockage levels in exported wheat.

GIPSA is expected to publish the proposal in the Federal Register this fall. The measures announced today were based, in part, on suggestions made by wheat producer organizations in Kansas, Texas, Colorado, Oklahoma, and Nebraska.