New Montana Wheat Breed Offers Supply Chain Win in UK

ADM Milling UK and ADM Direct presented to 60 UK growers the benefits of switching to the KWS Montana wheat variety during the inaugural Montana Wheat Conference on Nov. 16. The conference was hosted by KWS UK Ltd.—one of the UK’s leading seed breeders—at the iconic Lord’s Cricket Ground Media Centre in London.

During ADM’s presentation, Anna Perz, wheat development manager, ADM Milling UK, explained the technical properties and growing applications of the KWS Montana variety, also noting the high demand for quality, higher-protein wheat for ADM’s stronger flour blends.

“The switch to KWS Montana will enable us to further support British farming, use more UK-grown wheat, and produce more flour from 100 percent UK wheat,” said Perz.

The KWS Montana variety is new to the UK market. Previously, all strong wheats were imported from the U.S., Canada or Germany due to issues with quality, disease and/or lodging, Perz said.

To prove the variety’s suitability, colleagues from ADM Milling Technical Centre milled and tested KWS Montana for three years to prove its consistency.

ADM Direct’s Stuart Carpenter, head of procurement, and Darrell Yarwood, trading and logistics manager, also highlighted a number of case studies from last year’s crops and outlined the financial advantages of growing the variety during the conference.

“This has been another great example of an end-to-end supply chain win—supporting the business needs of the UK operation,” said Carpenter. “The conference offered farmers the opportunity to be involved in establishing the variety in the UK, which is only possible because of the good relationship between ADM Milling and KWS. Each year we work with them, and other major UK-based breeders, to advise which varieties from their breeding systems are suitable for ADM or the wider milling industry. This enables us to build trust, which is beneficial for the breeder and ADM.”