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World wheat flour trade is set to decline for a second straight year in 2025/26, dropping to 16.0 million tonnes ((wheat equivalent), a four-year low, as structurally weaker demand in Iraq and Sudan reflects a broader shift toward domestic milling and wheat grain imports.

Transitioning to whole wheat flour is not simply about raising extraction rates; it requires a fundamental redesign of process discipline and functional performance.

When macroeconomic balances deteriorate, the effects spread across the wheat value chain: input costs rise, financing burdens deepen, public regulation becomes more expensive, and milling margins come under pressure.

I recently had the pleasure of sharing my insights on the global pulses market at a vibrant event in Dubai, hosted by the Ukraine Soybean and Pulses Association.

In modern flour milling, moisture control is no longer a routine pre-step; it is the silent engineering behind yield, ash levels, energy use, and flour vitality.

The pendulum of the global agri-commodity market has swung violently. After three years defined by deficits, weather shocks, and price spikes, 2026 has dawned as the year of "Recalibration."

The EU has delayed the Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) to 30 December 2026, opening a window to simplify rules and address implementation challenges.

Volatility is now a defining feature of grain markets, but margin damage is still more often caused by organisational and behavioural failures than by price moves themselves.

AI has dominated industry talk—but milling needs prediction, not hype. Real value comes only when AI is built on automation, a strong OT network, one validated PLC-based data source, and fully automated clean data—so mills can anticipate failures, quality drift, energy use, and bottlenecks before they hit throughput.

The global food system stands at a crossroads. As demand for sustainable protein soars, pulses—beans, chickpeas, lentils, and peas—emerge as modern solutions to humanity’s most pressing nutritional challenges. Yet the most compelling chapter in this transformation is unfolding across a region uniquely positioned to capture its future: the Middle East.

In a world of “calm” wheat prices but persistent structural risks, leading millers can no longer rely on price alone. At Global Grain Geneva, Scott Wellcome and Fabien Varagnac explained why strict risk discipline, performance-driven wheat procurement and the digital tools are now essential to protecting flour margins and staying competitive.

Record Black Sea crops, slower-than-expected exports, Egypt’s shifting procurement model and Ukraine’s pivot away from Spain are setting a new pattern for wheat flows in 2025/26.