Interest in U.S. barley as a food product is growing amongst Taiwanese women. A recent workshop, co-sponsored by the U.S. Grains Council, introduced women to bakery products made from U.S. barley and wheat flour.

“The health food conscious general public in Taiwan is interested in the nutritional characteristics of barley,� said Clover Chang, USGC director in Taiwan.

At the workshop, two famous bakers demonstrated the preparation of four bakery products and displayed around 20 Chinese-style and western-style products to 120 women in attendance.

The Council is focusing on the introduction of the food application and benefits of high beta-glucan U.S. barley to bakers, housewives and the general public. The Council’s recent activities influenced local industry representatives to import approximately 200 metric tons (9,200 bushels) of U.S. barley for test use in food products.

“The Council believes that as the Taiwanese become more knowledgeable of the food products that can be produced with U.S. barley, the public will gain confidence in the U.S. barley industry and their interest in buying and eating food products made from barley will increase,� said Chang.

The potential for food barley use in bakery products in Taiwan currently stands at about 100,000-200,000 tons (4.6-9.2 million bushels) annually.

“If the Taiwanese included barley in their rice at a 10 percent inclusion rate, this would create a market for an additional 150,000 tons (6.7 million bushels) of food barley per year.

In the 2009 marketing year, Taiwan imported 62,331 tons (2.8 million bushels) of U.S. barley.