Partner Spotlight
The Wheat Marketing Center (WMC), located in the historic Albers Mill Building in Portland, Oregon, serves as a bridge between wheat growers and consumers. Funded by the Montana Wheat and Barley Committee (MWBC) for nearly 30 years, the WMC provides many services to both producers and end users. These services include technical training for customers to improve end product quality, grower workshops focused on the importance of wheat quality, innovative research and product development, and many crop quality testing services.
During the 1980’s, wheat producers in the Pacific Northwest saw increasing competition within our export markets and saw a need for a research and technical facility to promote the value and quality of U.S. wheat. U.S. Senator Mark Hatfield of Oregon successfully lobbied Congress to allocate $6 million toward the development of creating such a facility, and the Wheat Marketing Center was born. Seven state wheat commissions, including Montana, and the Port of Portland were the WMC’s charter entities.
The WMC is currently managed by Janice Cooper, a position she has held since 2015. Prior to joining WMC, Janice served as the Executive Director of the
California Wheat Commission, managed the California Association of Wheat Growers, and has worked at a very high level in business development and trade policy as the Trade Representative for the State of California in Washington, D.C. Janice has hosted many Montana wheat growers during her time at WMC, and has been a tremendous advocate for the industry. She is a wonderful friend to Montana and has announced she will be departing in her role as Managing Director and will miss her greatly. Montana producer and MWBC director Charlie Bumgarner currently serves on the board of the Wheat Marketing Center and is also a part of the search committee for the Managing Director position.
Each year, the Montana Wheat and Barley Committee hosts an Export Tour to Portland. These groups consist of growers, wheat breeders, elevator managing, and many others involved in agriculture in Montana. The Wheat Marketing Center is a major high-point of the trip, and attendees get to learn about end uses for different wheat classes, how ramen noodles are made, and if they’re lucky they might even get to blow up a tortilla or two. We are always looking for interested participants!