Executives at the three Northwest grain and wheat commissions expect lower revenue in the wake of smaller crops this year, when drought and heat shrank yields.

Assessments collected by the Idaho Wheat Commission will likely be 20% to 30% lower than normal,” executive director Casey Chumrau said.

Idaho wheat farmers are assessed 3.5 cents per bushel at the first point of sale.

“We expect to use some unused funds from last year to bridge the gap and hope to implement our programs as usual,” Chumrau said. “A second year like this would make it extremely challenging to maintain normal business.”

“We had budgeted this year for a loss but with the final estimated yields for 2021, we are projecting additional use of carryover funds,” Oregon Wheat CEO Amanda Hoey said. “Essentially, we anticipate that will use the cumulative net savings from the last two years.”

Oregon assessments are collected through the first purchaser-handler and the amount is set at 5 cents per bushel of wheat sold and $1 per ton on barley.

The Washington Grain Commission’s assessment is based on the net selling price at first point of sale, at the rate of three-quarters of 1% of the net receipts at the first point of sale.

“So, higher prices could have a tempered effect on the substantially lower production sold,”  CEO Glen Squires said.

“So, in many ways it is really too early to say what the magnitude of assessment decline will be, but it will be significant,” he said.