It may all come down to a matter of taste. In Taiwan, market research suggests that the taste of imported biscuits is too sweet and creamy for many Taiwanese consumers. Enter biscuits made from 50 percent gluten-free sorghum flour produced in the United States.
According to the U.S. Grains Council, Tsan Yu Yen, a leading food company in Taiwan, expressed interest in producing biscuits made from U.S. gluten-free sorghum flour and two local stores have already said they would sell the products if made.
“The market for gluten-free biscuits is a niche market,� said Clover Chang, USGC director in Taiwan. “Although sorghum’s gluten-free properties can control symptoms of Celiac sprue disease, the percentage of people with Celiac sprue disease in Taiwan is far lower than in Western countries. However, this is still a good start, introducing the food application of U.S. grain sorghum into Taiwan. We hope local food companies will expand the applications of grain sorghum into other bakery products such as noodles and other Chinese foods.�
Taiwan’s interest in producing biscuits made from U.S. gluten-free sorghum flour is a result of a 2010 Sorghum Food Survey Team visit to the United States, organized by the Council, using funds provided by United Sorghum Checkoff Program (USCP).
“The Sorghum Checkoff saw this as an important step in raising awareness of sorghum’s fit into the food industry. Much is being done domestically and internationally to help realize this objective,� said Florentino Lopez, USCP marketing director. “The food industry will play a vital part in sorghum’s future market potential.�
The visit led to the request for a 30-kilogram sample of gluten-free sorghum flour to be sent to Taiwan, provided by Nu Life Market LLC in Kansas. Initial testing of the product was positive and the Council is now working with Tsan Yu Yen to import U.S. gluten-free sorghum into Taiwan.
According to Chang, the potential market for grain sorghum for bakery, noodle and Chinese food production is estimated at 5,000-10,000 tons annually. Last year Taiwan imported 69,541 tons (274,000 bushels) of grain sorghum of which 770 tons (30,000 bushels) came from the United States.
“This latest development could open the door to more sales from U.S. producers and the expansion of a niche market in Taiwan,� Chang said.