As Georgia’s population continues to grow, construction is
on the rise and roads continue to be widened to make room for
the increased traffic. It’s all adding up to increased profit
for wheat farmers.
Wheat Straw Protects New
Grass
In addition to harvesting wheat, some farmers are now
harvesting
wheat straw often used as a soil stabilizer in construction. And
they can’t seem to harvest it fast enough to meet the needs of
the construction industry, say University of Georgia experts.
“When a construction company puts down grass seed, they
use wheat straw to protect the soil and newly planted
grass,”
said Dewey Lee, an extension grains agronomist with UGA’s College
of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. “You’ll see
wheat
straw being used all around newly constructed homes and
businesses,
and on road banks.”
The state’s department of transportation also uses a lot of
wheat straw. “They use both bales and loose straw when they
cut road banks,” Lee said.
Farmers Need Additional
Market
The demand for wheat straw couldn’t come at a better time for
farmers. “The price of wheat has declined to a terrible low,
and the number of farmers growing wheat is also declining,”
Lee said. “The price of wheat is the lowest it’s been in
20 years.”
New domestic uses for wheat straw are helping farmers add
value
to their wheat crops. “Farmers are highly dependent on how
close they are to a wheat straw buyer,” Lee said. “If
they can find a buyer in or near their county, wheat straw can
bring in a pretty good profit.”
The profit to the farmer is also directly related to the
farmers’
labor costs. “The farmer has to concentrate on setting a
minimum price for the straw, if he’s not going to handle it
himself,”
Lee said. “If he does bale it himself, he has to store it
and then charge a higher price for it.”
Georgia Wheat Also Sold in
Tennessee
“There are a lot of growers across the state that are
taking advantage of this market,” he said. “North
Georgia
growers can move their straw to the Chattanooga market while
growers
in the upper coastal plain sell their straw in Macon and
Atlanta.”
Wheat growers are planting their crops now for harvest in
early
May through June.
Georgia-grown wheat is soft-red winter wheat commonly used
in pies, pastries, cookies, biscuits and donuts.
(Photograph by Sharon Omahen, University of Georgia
College
of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.)
