Wheat is the new 'in' crop for many northwest Alabama farmers

It's possible for Tennessee Valley wheat farmers to literally have their cake and eat it too, thanks to rising grain prices.

A global shortage of the grain has spawned a flurry of new wheat fields in northwest Alabama. Fields that have traditionally been used to grow cotton or corn are being planted in wheat this fall. The soft red winter wheat grown in the Shoals is used to make cakes, crackers and other baked goods and for feeding livestock. Wheat is grown as far south in Alabama as along the Gulf Coast in Baldwin County.

"I've been growing wheat all my life," said veteran farmer John Kasmeier Jr., of St. Florian. "My father and grandfather grew wheat. But I have never seen so much wheat being planted around here."

Roger Wilson, executive director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Farm Service Agency office in Florence, expects wheat plantings to double this year. "A lot of people who have never planted wheat before tell me they are going to grow some this year."

Wilson said with wheat trading for more than $7 per 60-pound bushel on futures markets, the temptation to grow the grain is immense for north Alabama farmers. In 2006, wheat sold for about $3.50 per bushel.

The increased interest in growing wheat has been so intense, local farm supply dealers have been hard-pressed to meet the demand for seed. "We've run out of wheat seed several times this fall, but have been able to scramble and find more for the farmers. We've never seen a demand for wheat seed like this before," said Greg Hamner, president of Clemmons and Hamner Seed in Greenhill.

The world's wheat supply is expected to fall to 143 million metric tons this winter, the lowest level in 25 years, according to a Southeast Farm Press report. The report stated that demand for wheat worldwide is outpacing the supply. The decreased supply of wheat is causing an increase in the price for bread and other products made from the grain.

As wheat supplies dwindle, the price farmers receive for the grain is rising.

Tim Reed, coordinator of the Alabama Cooperative Extension System's Franklin County office, said with wheat prices at near record levels, many farmers are switching crops in hopes of boosting profits for their farms.

"We've got farmers who have not grown wheat in a long time growing it this year. Some who have never planted wheat before are planting some this time," Reed said. "Most of the farmers who have been growing wheat are planting more this year. We're going to see a lot more wheat and soybeans planted this year while corn acreage is going to drop a little and cotton acreage fall a lot. This was a brutal year to cotton, and a lot of farmers are looking for other crops to grow this year."

The increased wheat plantings in Alabama could boost the state's ranking in production of the grain. In 2006, Alabama ranked 37th in wheat production, according to the Alabama Agricultural Statistics Service. Kansas, North Dakota, Montana, Washington and Idaho were the leading wheat states.

Kasmeier said he and his son Kevin are increasing their wheat acreage this year. They are waiting for a break in the rain to begin their plantings.

Unlike corn and cotton, which are planted in the spring and harvested in the fall, wheat is planted in late fall or early winter in Alabama and harvested in the spring. Some farmers plant soybeans in their fields after a wheat harvest, allowing them to reap two crops within the same year.

North Alabama's wheat crop for 2007 was heavily damaged by freezing weather in April. While the crop is immune to freeze damage during the winter before it begins producing grain, it can be damaged by cold weather once the grains of wheat appear.

Hamner said Shoals farmers are not overly worried about another late-season freeze damaging the wheat that will be harvested in 2008.

"That freeze we had in April was a once in a 100 years, maybe a once-in-a-lifetime event," Hamner said. "I don't think we will see another one like that next spring. At least I hope we don't."

Although the Midwest and Northwest remain the heart of the Wheat Belt in the United States, Hamner said the April freeze in the Southeast played a role in the run up of wheat prices around the world this year. "We're so interconnected globally now that the morning after that freeze, the wheat buyers in China knew about it. Anytime an agricultural disaster occurs now, it has an impact on farm product prices around the world."

Hamner said the prices Alabama farmers will receive for their wheat in 2008 will help them recoup some of their losses from this year's crop. "Now is a good time to be growing wheat in Alabama," he said.

Wilson said low-interest loans are available from the Farm Service Agency to help farmers build bins for storing their wheat harvest until it can be sold. He said the increased wheat planting could overwhelm grain elevators in the Tennessee Valley when the harvest begins. Farmers who have storage bins can avoid the long lines of trucks waiting to unload at grain buyers next spring.

Most of the wheat grown in the Shoals will be sold to flour mills and grain dealers located along the Tennessee River, Hamner said. Limestone, Madison and Lauderdale counties are typically the leading wheat producing counties in Alabama.

Shannon Norwood, a precision agriculture specialist for the extension system, said wheat is definitely the "in" crop for north Alabama farms this year.

"It's been a long time since we had as many farmers interested in growing wheat as we have this year," Norwood said.

Hamner warns that Tennessee Valley farmers are not alone in boosting their wheat acreage. Farmers around the globe are expected to grow more wheat this year. Hamner recommends farmers book their crop now with a grain dealer to ensure being able to reap the increased prices.

"I'm afraid we're going to see prices begin to soften in spring when all the wheat being planted now hits the market," he said.

Dennis Sherer can be reached at 740-5746 or dennis.sherer@timesdaily.com.