Wheat Scoop: Haiti’s Only Flour Mill Destroyed in Earthquake

For more than a week, the world has been watching as Haiti attempts to recover from the devastation left in the wake of the Jan. 12 earthquake that rocked the island country. Reports from Haiti are that roads, homes, businesses and infrastructure have been destroyed, leaving an already poverty-stricken country in even greater need of basic necessities.

Among the businesses destroyed in the earthquake was Haiti’s only flour mill, which is co-owned by Seaboard Corp., Continental Grain Col. and a group of investors. Responsible for supplying the country’s 9.78 million inhabitants with a unique type of bread made solely from Hard Red Winter wheat, the mill also employed more than 200 people with relatively high-paying jobs.

Mark Fowler, associate director of the International Grains Program at Kansas State University, was a Seaboard employee when the flour mill was bought by Seaboard in 1998. As part of the team that helped rebuild the mill, Fowler spent 200 days in Haiti over 13 months from 1998-1999. In a country as poverty-stricken as Haiti, the flour mill was a source of national pride, employment and independence.

“The mill brought more than 200 jobs to a country that had very high unemployment. A community of 4,000 people popped up nearly overnight, because of the hope of jobs it brought to Haiti,” Fowler explains. “To the employees of the mill, it is a sign of national pride that they can produce flour and feed their fellow countrymen.”

The earthquake destroyed much of the mill complex, although warehouses, offices, grain silos and the port berth remain largely intact, according to a press release issued by the company. The Haiti mill partners have already pledged to rebuild and restore the mill, as well as explore options to import and distribute donated and commercial flour until the mill resumes operations.

Each year, the mill processes more than 3.05 million bushels of U.S. Hard Red Winter wheat, which is used primarily for a product called “bol,” which is essentially a bun made from a quarter-pound of dough that’s formed into a ball and baked. According to Fowler, the bun is a primary source of calories in a typical Haitian’s diet.

Since the earthquake, staple foods like bol have been in short supply, prompting U.S. wheat industry leaders to seek ways in which to help the people of Haiti.

Justin Gilpin, chief executive officer of Kansas Wheat, says that U.S. Wheat Associates’ Food Aid Working Group is working with the U.S. government to find ways to meet the humanitarian needs of the Haiti government, including distribution of flour and wheat. The Food Aid Working Group’s goal is to encourage sustainable food security and global food assistance on behalf of U.S. wheat producers.

“In the aftermath of this tragedy, we need to find ways in which the U.S. can fulfill our role as a world leader and share our supply of nutritious foodstuffs with a country in need,” Gilpin says. “Many K-State grain science graduates and IGP short course participants have worked in the Haiti flour mill over the years. Our thoughts are with them and their families right now.”

Through IGP short courses, Fowler has been instrumental in teaching the intricacies of U.S. Food Aid programs to milling professionals from around the world. He says Public Law 480, also known as the Food for Peace program, can be used to ship food aid directly to Haiti and ensure distribution of these foodstuffs to the needy with minimal waste. “Long-term, our goal is to help the milling company get re-established to the point it can mill wheat instead of merely distributing flour, which will allow more Haitians to get back to work,” he explains.