business backgrounder | economy a rich history
That legacy dates to 1869 , McGregor said , when the first barrels of Walla Walla flour travelled 17 months across the ocean , around Cape Horn at the tip of South America , to finally feed hungry dockworkers in Liverpool , England .
“ International relations and international trade are cornerstones for Washington agriculture ,” McGregor says . “ It has taken generations to build relationships .”
Today , Washington ’ s exports cover wheat and much more : Passenger jets . Video game consoles . Apples and cherries . Fish and timber and propane . Music stands and water bottles . AWB ’ s employers continue to find new efficiencies to make great products . But those products need markets .
And access to markets requires good relations with our trading partners , McGregor says .
Washington producers raise more than 300 different crops , he noted , from wheat to peas and potatoes .
“ The one thing we all have in common is a recognition that we need to continue to be building strong trade partnerships with people across the ocean ,” McGregor said . Washington state ’ s commerce director agrees . “ Washington is one of the most trade-dependent states in the nation , and we are very concerned about the impact that China ’ s tariffs will have on our exports ,” Washington state Department of Commerce Director Brian Bolender told the Washington China Watch Digest earlier this year . “ We will continue to promote bilateral trade and investment between Washington state and China . We also need to work with our trading partners and the WTO to address the issues raised by the administration .” The news cycle has swirled all year . It ’ s a lot to think about . Let ’ s go back to that sunny wheat field and follow the money .
following the journey
McGregor ’ s wheat will grow stronger over time , thanks to fertilizer and certified seeds . Pick a variety : Trifecta or LCS Artdeco . Buck Pronto or Louise . Farmers buy it for as much as $ 15 a bushel .
With decent weather and timely planting , the crop will most likely survive . A farmer can spend over $ 300,000 on a good planter tractor . Hard red varieties make for good bread flour . The soft white wheats are used for more delicate cakes and pastries in Japan , the Philippines and other Asian countries .
Big combines will cut the crop in the fall . These machines can top $ 600,000 . From there , a Peterbilt truck produced by PACCAR will move the wheat to the Columbia River .
At the river , the crop is loaded onto a barge bigger than an elementary school . Tidewater ’ s No . 77 is 274 feet long and can haul 3,600 tons . That ’ s about 7.2 million pounds , and $ 600,000 in wheat .
The barge lumbers off downriver , headed to Portland . Overhead , a new Boeing 737-700 , made in Everett , moves passengers from Seattle to Phoenix .
The barge passes towns like Arlington and The Dalles on the Oregon side of the river and Bingen and Camas on the Washington side where kids practice their music lessons on Manhasset music stands , manufactured in nearby Yakima .
The truck arrives in Vancouver and unloads in a storage facility . Some of the 3,237 people who work at the port will oversee the unloading and storage . Later , they will usher the crop into an ocean-going vessel for export .
Before heading home , the truck driver fuels up and grabs a bite at a local restaurant overlooking the Columbia . Both of those final stops are part of the port ’ s annual $ 1.6 billion economic impact .
The next morning , the tiny wheat berries from Whitman County are loaded onto the cargo ship with many , many others . Eventually they head across the Pacific to their final destination .
“ These are times we need to be building relationships , and not damaging ones that have been cornerstones to us ,” McGregor says .
Back home in the Palouse , farmers are busy fixing equipment , applying fertilizer and getting ready to plant for the next season . Soon they will plant about 2.2 million acres of wheat . The roots will travel as much as six feet beneath the soil , literally holding the Eastern Washington plains together .
Without them , the land can literally dry up and blow away , and take Washington ’ s wealth with it .
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