Wheat

Wheat is grown in most of the 50 states of the United States, although the quantity of wheat grown varies widely from one region to another. The many varieties of winter and spring wheat are grouped into six official classes. The class a variety fits into is determined by its hardness, the color of its kernels and by its planting time. Each class of wheat has its own relatively uniform characteristics related to milling, baking or other food use. The kind of wheat grown in North Idaho is Hard Red Spring and Soft White. The winter varieties of wheat cannot tolerate the freezing conditions.

Hard Red Spring (HRS), another important bread wheat, maintains the highest protein content, usually 13-14%, in addition to good milling and baking characteristics. This spring-seeded wheat is primarily grown in the north central United States--North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and Montana. HRS comprises just over twenty percent of U.S. wheat exports. Soft White (SW) is a preferred wheat for flat breads, cakes, pastries, crackers and noodles and is grown primarily in the Pacific Northwest.

Soft white is a low protein wheat, usually about 10%. SW represents just over twenty percent of total U.S. exports, primarily to Asia and the Middle East. Subclasses are soft white, white club and western white.