IAOM MEA - David McKee€¦ · IAOM MEA in South Africa took place in 2010 shortly after ... wheat exporter, explained that among the seven ports operated in the east of Australia

76 January 2015 / World Grain / www.World-Grain.com

he International Association of Operative Millers’ Mideast and Africa Conference (IAOM MEA) returned to Cape Town, South Africa to celebrate its 25th year

Dec. 3-6, 2014. Over 600 delegates, exhibitors, and speak-ers came together from 45 countries during the three days to renew old ties, establish new relationships and to exchange the latest information on technical developments in milling as well as data and trends in wheat markets.

South Africa’s National Chamber of Milling (NCM) hosted the event for the second time in just over four years. The first IAOM MEA in South Africa took place in 2010 shortly after the first World Cup in that country.

In his welcoming speech, NCM Chairman Peter Cook made particular note of the progress of flour fortification in Africa with 19 countries now mandating the public health interven-tion compared to just two countries, South Africa and Nigeria, 10 years ago.

25TH ANNIVERSARYThe Middle East and Africa region continues to account for

nearly half of the world’s trade in wheat at 73 million tonnes in 2013-14, according to the International Grains Council, and much of the global increase in milling capacity. On this ba-sis, the IAOM MEA has not only proved sustainable but has grown substantially over the last quarter century.

Melinda Farris, IAOM executive director, presented plaques of recognition to four long-time members of the IAOM MEA Leadership Council who have led the trans-formation of their annual conference from a modest gather-ing of 25 or so millers and grain industry representatives

TMiddle East and Africa District attracts more than 600 delegates from 45 countries to its annual conference in Cape Town, South Africa

by David McKee

IAOM MEA

Cape Town, South Africa was the site of this year’s IAOM MEA event.

celebrates 25th anniversary

FEATURE


25 years ago in Cairo into one of the global wheat industry’s premier events. The four included District Director Ali Habaj of Oman Flour Mills; District Chairman Merzad Jamshidi; Essa Al Ghurair, Chairman of Al Ghurair Resources LLC; and Martin Schlauri of Bühler AG, Switzerland.

Jamshidi, who has played a vital role in the important participation of Iranian millers in the district over the years, identified as a major accomplishment “just the fact we have been able to con-sistently keep the events attractive for both the millers and suppliers. After all, 25 years is a quarter of a century. As for the future, we are trying to get more of the mills’ key personnel coming to the show with custom-made papers to serve their needs.”

Furthermore, the event will “go to countries where traveling would be a bit easier and could act as a hub.”

The event’s formula for success in-cludes its benefit to and support from major wheat exporters as expressed by Sean Cowman, regional manager – Middle East and Africa of CBH Group, a cooperative owned by 4,200 Western Australian grain growers. He noted that the conference “is a unique and invalu-able link to industry stakeholders.” He said it provides the connection of “Australian grain from our growers to the end users in the Middle East and Africa. We enjoy seeing customers and industry colleagues at this unique and well organized event.”

Bühler’s Martin Schlauri offered his own vision for the future, saying the event “will remain a fixed date in the agenda of the milling executive. Building up sub-regions in MEA will bring the IAOM values and contribution even closer to the markets. This would allow to further focus on topics of spe-cific regional interest, such as process-ing of maize or other grains.”

Schlauri predicts that as has happened in developed countries already, in the Middle East and Africa the grain process-ing industry will be challenged by chang-ing consumer expectations and trends,

such as food safety or GMO issues in the raw material. “These topics and more shall be on the agenda of the future IAOM MEA conferences,” he said.

FOOD SECURITYU.S. Wheat Associates (USW)

President Alan Tracy used his opening day address before key industry play-ers from the world’s major wheat im-porting region to announce the launch of a major new food security initiative based on a proposed full liberalization of the world’s wheat trade. Such a mea-sure would be the most effective way to provide “genuine food security to the world’s wheat importers.”

He pointed out that as the most im-portant global food grain, wheat “pro-vides 20% of the calories consumed ev-ery day on earth and 20% of the protein for the poorest half of human popula-tion. Demand is growing, but not every country that consumes wheat can pro-duce wheat.”

The USW concept would be based on government-to-government sectoral agreements under the auspices of the World Trade Organization. “In exchange for eliminating tariffs, licenses and other trade barriers, the world’s wheat buyers would have guaranteed access to export-able wheat supplies even when world supplies are down.”

TRADING SESSIONThe emergence of the Black Sea and

Baltic Sea regions as origins for wheat to the region has been one of the biggest shifts in Middle East and Africa grain trade in the last quarter century. Indrek Aigro of Copenhagen Merchants, Denmark, pointed out that the eight countries of the Baltic Sea region have seen wheat exports rise from 9 million tonnes four years ago to an estimated 17 million tonnes in the current mar-keting year, accounting for much of the near doubling in net European Union wheat exports to 40 million tonnes in recent years.

Total Baltic Sea region wheat harvest will be 52 million tonnes, exceeding the

previous record by 15%. Saudi Arabia and Iran have become the main destination of Germany and Poland’s milling wheat. The two countries now have exportable sur-pluses of about 11 million tonnes.

“Germany’s wheat is reaching many new markets because of the surplus,” said Aigro. That amount will be 7.5 mil-lion to 8 million tonnes.

Eleven years ago, the three Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania had no exportable surpluses, but now they are shipping out two-thirds of their production.

Andrew Vorland of Glencore Grain BV, Netherlands, surveyed the supply situation from the Black Sea, noting that the 35 million tonnes of wheat exports from Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan this year will constitute 24% of world wheat exports.

“Black Sea wheat is moving to 100 countries these days,” he stated. Russia’s 6.2 million tonnes of wheat exports to Egypt and 3.6 million tonnes sent to Turkey account for 60% and 86%, respectively, of the wheat imports of the two countries.

Even South Africa, once dependent on the U.S. and Argentina, has become a major outlet for Russian wheat.

Jean-Pierre Langlois-Berthelot of France Export Cereales reminded the audience in his presentation that nearly 100% of his country’s wheat exports go to North African and West African countries, with Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia as the largest markets but grow-ing volumes heading to the francophone countries of West Africa.

After Asia, the Middle East and Africa are the most important des-tinations for wheat exports from Australia, taking 40% of nearly 20 million tonnes in exports in the 2013-14 crop year with the trend lower this year. Nick Poutney, regional man-ager for Graincorp, Australia’s largest wheat exporter, explained that among the seven ports operated in the east of Australia by Graincorp, “each port zone has a specific supply and demand

(Continued on page 84)

FEATURE: IAOM MEA CELEBRATES 25TH ANNIVERSARY


Representing Sefar at the expo are from left, Laurent Brehm, Christoph Tobler, Shawn Kallmann, and Joe Klingler.

Opening the 25th Mideast & Africa Conference and Expo are, from left, Abdul Reham Al Ruwaitie of GSFMO, Essa Al Ghurair, Al Ghurair Re-sources, and Ali Habaj, Oman Flour Mills.

Gary Douglas of ADC Energy Systems, left, visits with Peter Tatlow of FRAME.

From left, Magdi Salah Eldien, SEEN Flour Mills; and David Balaguer and Eliseo Sempere of Fundiciones Balaguer, S.A.

From left, Pietro Barbalarga of OMAS meets with Louis Dreyfus Commodities representatives Delene Roode and Hugo Van Der Merwe.

Representatives of NEUERO Touraj Goudarzi, left seated, and Jack Fox, standing center, meet with a group of millers during the expo.


www.World-Grain.com / World Grain / January 2015 81

Representing Muhlenchemie at the conference are from left, Lennart Kutschinski, Laurent Guérindon, and Tom Runge.

Markus Löns of Brabender meets with visitor during the expo.

From left, Randall Suess of the Washington Grain Commission visits with Kirk Nelson of Behlen Manufacturing.

The representatives of Silos Cordoba had many visitors to their booth during the expo.

From left, Dwight Foster Jones, Tiger Milling; and Ali Osman Korkut and Stefano Soldi of Alapala.

From left, Temel Harmankaya of Selis; Awie Viljoen of Vaal Milling Co.; and Sedat Kunduraci of Selis.



From left, Amir Latif, Dalgroup Dubai; Peter Marriott, Satake; Vannessa Emberson, Satake; Greg Farinha, Techmach Technology; Shamik Patel, Satake; and Alexander Donnelly of Dal Food.

From left, Mahmoud Abharian of Bozorgmehran visits with Laurent Morillon of Morillon.

The Symaga booth enjoyed many visitors during the expo.From left, Ricardo Fontenelle and Ricardo Pereira of Sangati Berga.

From left, Mohammed Elkhattabi, Vigan Engineering, Dirk Janssens, Vigan Engineering (formerly with Nutrex), and Nicolas Dechamps, Vigan Engineering

From left, Navneet Jindal of Kay Jay Chill Rolls poses for a photo with Habeed Azmath of Millrite.


www.World-Grain.com / World Grain / January 2015 83

Representing Buhler during the expo are from left, Lukas Armatys, Rabih Al Halabi, Andreas Flückiger, and Philippe Taeschler.

Mill Service representative Paolo Carrain, left, visits with a miller during the expo.

From left, Garip Cantemir, Ugur; and Jalal Ahmed Khorsheed and Deep-ak Tulsian of Midstar FZE.

A group of millers gather at the 4B Braime Elevator Components booth during a break in the conference.

Enjoying the expo are from left, Ahmad Sadeghian, Tak Makaron; Melinda Farris, IAOM; and Merzad Jamshidi KFF Mills.

From left, Khalid Macharia, MEREC Industries; Müzeyyen Ünlü, Novozymes; Peter Muni, Bakhresa Group; and Muzaffer Arslan, Altinbilek Makina San Tic Ltd Sti.


84 January 2015 / World Grain / www.World-Grain.com For more information, see Page 122.

Fill

dynamic and quality parameters.” But this year all test weights are quite strong, he said.

Dan Basse, president of AgResource, Chicago, Illinois, U.S., in addition to moderating the trading session, pro-vided his own animated and insightful prognostication for global grain mar-kets in the coming years with state-ments such as: “We think the super cycle in agricultural commodities is kind of dead,” and that with the price of protein going up, “this is the year of species, not of grain.”

EXHIBITIONNinety exhibitors from five conti-

nents and 20 countries were present at the trade show held jointly with the con-ference at the Cape Town International Convention Center. Turkey’s contingent of 23 exhibitors was the largest. Italy

followed with 11 companies present. A handful of firms have been present

at nearly every IAOM. Ihsan Mustafa Aybakar commented, “As Aybakar, it is our 24th conference. It is not about busi-ness alone anymore. We all look forward to catch up with members of the indus-try. It is the biggest sectoral networking opportunity for the region. You get to meet mill owners, grain traders, equip-ment and service suppliers. We will be attending in the future.”

The largest groups of exhibitors were mill manufacturers, steel silo compa-nies, and suppliers of flour additives such as enzymes and vitamin and min-eral premixes for fortification.

MANAGEMENT FORUM AND TECHNICAL SESSIONS

During the first day’s session a se-ries of world-class speakers challenged conventional management thinking and

encouraged listeners to doubt their stan-dard perceptions, explore the unknown and push for innovation in their ap-proach to business.

The Technical & What’s New Session, taking up the entire second full day, provided a platform for 16 speak-ers to present the latest technological developments in all aspects of wheat milling. Jeff Gwirtz, president of JAG Services, Manhattan, Kansas, U.S., of-fered one of the three keynote speeches of the day, pointing out that in milling operations “problems may exist with-out you knowing it.” He described an approach relying on “the importance of checking and knowing your flour sheet to solve problems.”

FEED MILLINGFor the first time the conference fea-

tured a Feed Milling Technology and Trends Seminar, held on the third day.

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86 January 2015 / World Grain / www.World-Grain.com For more information, see Page 122.

Great Plains

Diets in many of the countries of the region are improving to include more animal protein as economies develop and incomes rise. Many large wheat millers, most notably in Nigeria, have moved into the feed sector or are at least exploring opportunities.

AFRICAN MILLING SCHOOLBühler’s Martin Schlauri as modera-

tor of the management forum took the occasion to present Bühler’s own ini-tiative to develop management skills in Africa by inaugurating its African Milling School in Nairobi after three years of planning and the construction of a building for that purpose at its mill-ing service center. The first two courses are fully subscribed.

Schlauri has been named director of the school but will continue to manage key account relationships. Noting the big increases in mill investment activ-

ity in the sub-Saharan region in recent years, Schlauri commented, “Africa is definitely on the move.”

FFI WORKSHOPThe Flour Fortification Initiative

(FFI) continued its long-running af-filiation with IAOM MEA by holding a separate one-day workshop on Dec. 2 attended by about 60 public health offi-cials, millers and NGO representatives.

FFI Director Scott Montgomery pre-sented an FFI award recognizing the contribution of Abubakar Bakhresa, CEO of Said Salim Bakhresa & Co. Ltd., the largest milling company in Tanazania and East Africa, through its support since 2013 of national level mandatory vitamin and mineral forti-fication in Tanzania of all industrially produced wheat flour. Magdy Shehata of World Food Programme in Egypt re-ceived an FFI award as well in recogni-

tion of his six years of tireless work to institutionalize fortification of govern-ment-subsidized baladi bread.

IAOM MEA DUBAI 2015At the closing ceremony, Essa

Al Ghurair, chairman of Al Ghurair Resources, Dubai, UAE, received the handover of the IAOM MEA District flag from Peter Cook. Organizers hope for a record turnout in late 2015 at the ever popular, thriving and busi-ness friendly air transportation hub where the event will be held for the fourth time.

David McKee’s grain industry consultancy, Key International LLC, provides market research,

feasibility analysis, technical studies and project guidance to companies and organizations. He can be reached at [email protected].

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IAOM MEA - David McKee€¦ · IAOM MEA in South Africa took place in 2010 shortly after ... wheat exporter, explained that among the seven ports operated in the east of Australia