Texas Sorghum Insider

International Sorghum Demand – While China’s presence in the U.S. market became noticed last year, they are certainly making a statement this year. China’s most recent purchase last week of 11.35 million bushels was the largest this marketing year. China purchased 60 percent of the U.S. sorghum crop in the 2013/2014 marketing year. Japan also purchased 2.3 million bushels of U.S. sorghum last week. Only two and a half months into the current marketing year (beginning Sept. 1), total export commitments of U.S. sorghum are already at 136.95 million bushels (China has purchased 87 percent of that total). Commitments during the 2013/2014 marketing year totaled 199 million total bushels. Japan, Canada and Korea are the only other known buyers at this stage.

Section 18 Extension – Texas received an amendment to the Section 18 for the use of sulfoxaflor. This amendment extend the use period with a new expiration date of December 10, 2014. View the new Section 18 Use Directions –  14TX02 Transform WG Amended Section 18 Use Directions exp 12.10.2014.

 

Global Food Security – As 150,000 new people are born every day the pressure to produce more food efficiently continues to increase. As nearly one billion go to bed hungry every night, DuPont is actively fighting world hunger on numerous levels. One of note however, is a new database the company sponsors called The Global Food Security Index. DuPont teamed up with a group of experts to take a closer look at food security and trends associated with it. The panel, ranging from the academic, non-profit and the government sector, assess the core issues of food affordability, availability and quality for 109 countries. This index is the first to examine food security comprehensively across the three internationally established dimensions. The study also looks beyond hunger to the underlying factors affecting food insecurity. To increase the ongoing relevance of the study the index is updated quarterly to reflect the risk countries face throughout the year. A version of the index along with graphics illustrating food security trends globally can be found at http://foodsecurityindex.eiu.com/.

 

 Featured Sorghum Recipe

Gluten Free Sugar Cookies

3 cups sorghum flour
1/2cup coconut sugar
1 cup palm shortening (softened)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 eggs1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup almond milk

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. In one bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together.
3. In another bowl, mix the softened shortening and the sugar together.
4. Then add in the vanilla and flax eggs.
5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix only until combined.
6. If the batter looks too dry, add in the almond milk one tablespoon at a time.
7. Gather the dough into a ball.
8. Cut the dough in half.
9. Wrap both pieces of dough and place in the fridge for 20 minutes.
10. Grab one piece of the dough and roll onto a floured surface until it’s about 1/4 inch thick.
11. Cut into shapes. Place the cookie shapes onto a lined baking sheet.
12. Bake for about 10 minutes or until the cookie edges turn a golden brown.
13. Let cookies completely cool before removing them from the baking sheet.

Repeat these steps with the second ball of dough.Store these cookies in an airtight container in the fridge. You can also freeze them for longer storage. Enjoy!