Germany: High grain prices make pasta and bread more expensive - Mill Association

The prices of wheat, especially durum wheat but also oats, have risen dramatically since the harvest. To suggest that this cannot have any impact on food prices because the share of raw material costs is so low is not correct, says Peter Haarbeck, the managing director of the Association of Grain, Milling and Starch Industry (VGMS). In contrast to claims to the contrary, such as those made by a well-known grain trader last week, Haarbeck makes it clear: "The raw material costs for durum wheat semolina or flour, but also for pasta and bread, make up a significant proportion of the production costs!" This can be illustrated particularly clearly using the example of pasta: just under one kilo of durum wheat semolina is required for one kilogram of pasta. Durum wheat is currently quoted at € 540 per ton in Bologna, the average price in 2020 was € 280 and € 230 per ton in 2019. Assuming that 700 g of semolina can be obtained from one kilo of durum wheat, the raw material costs alone ...