About Us

U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) is the export market development organization for the U.S. wheat industry. USW promotes the reliability, quality and value of all six U.S. wheat classes to wheat buyers, millers, bakers, food processors and government officials in more than 100 countries around the world.

Its mission is to “Develop, maintain, and expand international markets to enhance wheat’s profitability for U.S. wheat producers and its value for their customers.”

Funding is made possible through checkoff dollars, goods and services from 17 state wheat commissions and cost-share grants from the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service.

USW does not buy, sell nor process wheat; we do help make it easier for everyone else who does.

USW proudly represents the hard-working farm families that produce enough wheat every year to fill American tables, while still supplying a substantial share of world wheat trade.

OUR ACTIVITIES

USW works to help wheat buyers, millers, bakers, wheat food processors, and government officials understand the quality, value, and reliability of all six classes of U.S. wheat.

Find out more about how USW works with customers.

OUR HISTORY

Wheat farmers in post-World War II America were producing more wheat than ever before. But, with a poorly standardized marketing system, farmers needed a new way to improve marketing opportunities for their wheat. To do so, state wheat leadership created two regional organizations to coordinate export market development – Great Plains Wheat Market Development Association and Western Wheat Associates.

The Great Plains Wheat Market Development Association, chartered in 1958, was tasked with promoting wheat exports from the Plains states.

Western Wheat Associates was formed in April 1959 to expand international markets for wheat from the Pacific Northwest.

Realizing that the world wheat market was transforming into a global marketplace combined with the growing overlapping demand for U.S. wheat classes, the two organizations merged in 1980 to form one overseas grain promotion organization for wheat – U.S. Wheat Associates.

USW remains fixed on the mission of the farmers who created these legacy organizations to develop and grow export markets.

OUR FUNDING

USW is supported by a highly successful partnership between our state wheat commission members and cost-share funding from the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS).

State Support. Wheat producers contribute a portion of their wheat sales (either by bushel or by production value) to their state wheat commission, known as a checkoff program. Currently 17 states contribute checkoff dollars to USW. This qualifies USW to apply for matching funds from FAS. Many state wheat commissions also contribute special project funds.

USDA Programs. Most annual matching funds come to USW from FAS through the Market Access Program (MAP) and the Foreign Market Development (FMD) program. FAS requires USW to prepare an annual Unified Export Strategy to earn program funding. While FAS funding varies, its average match has been about $2.00 for every $1 in state funding.

USW does not receive direct funding from any commercial source.

For more information, visit the Policy section of this website.