KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, US — These are the 12 nations at which World Grain took an in-depth look through its Country Focus series in 2022. Revisit the locations and the perspective they provide.

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, US — When Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, it set off a chain reaction in the global grain markets that was felt from the hungry living in less-developed nations to the top echelons of government and agricultural industry leadership.

While the war and its fallout were the most shocking shakeup of 2022, climate change, mergers, sustainability and biotechnology continued to push innovative and practical solutions for the global grain and milling industries.

One can never predict the future with 100% confidence, but looking back at the previous year, we might be able to determine where the trends will take global agriculture in 2023. 

WASHINGTON, DC, US — Along with corn and wheat, rice, an edible starchy cereal grain, is one of the important staple crops used to nourish the world, providing a food source rich in carbohydrates.

According to the US Department of Agriculture’s World Agriculture Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) November 2022 report, the global production of rice is projected to reach 503.69 million tonnes in 2022-23. Of that total, USDA expects 52.83 million tonnes will be exported to world markets.

China is the largest producer and importer of rice to meet its projected 2022-23 domestic consumption of 155 million tonnes.

These are the top 10 global rice producing countries.

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, US — Corn is the top produced crop in the world. Its high starch content and versatility make it useful in hundreds of products such as food and beverages, biodegradable materials, fuel ethanol and especially animal feed.

The US Department of Agriculture’s World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) projects the world will produce 1.172 billion tonnes of corn in marketing year 2022-23, of which 183.58 million tonnes will be exported. The WASDE sees individual countries’ domestic feed production using 743.05 million tonnes of corn, and global ending stocks at 304.53 million tonnes.

These are the Top 10 corn producing nations in the world, according to the September WASDE 2022-23 projections.

In 2022-23, the International Grains Council’s July report anticipates worldwide wheat production to reach 770 million tonnes, down from 781 million tonnes in 2021-22, with 195 million tonnes available for trade.

Most wheat production comes from a handful of countries and even fewer are major exporters, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. Here’s a look at the top 10 wheat-producing countries worldwide, based on total yield in tonnes from 2000-2020 with 2022-23 production and consumption projections.

This year’s World Flour Day is planned for March 20 and will be celebrated under the motto “Flour and People-Flour means the world to us.” The focus for this third World Flour Day is the significance of flour for each person. 

World Flour Day was initiated by the FlourWorld Museum to honor flour as one of the most important staple foods. The FlourWorld Museum in Wittenburg near Hamburg, Germany, holds the world’s largest collection of flour sacks, with more than 3,700 sacks from 140 countries. Flour.Power.Life is the guiding principle under which the sacks tell about the traditions, history and myths of flour.

As part of World Flour Day, the museum will unveil the Flour Sack of the Year, celebrating a flour sack design that best illustrates this year’s motto. Winners are displayed in the museum, an initiative of Mühlenchemie, a member of the Stern-Wywiol Gruppe.

In honor of World Flour Day, here are six previous Flour Sack of the Year honorees.