India is one of the major producers of durum wheat with a total output of 2.5 million tonnes. This variety is mainly grown in Punjab and central India. However, most of the produce is used to meet the domestic demand.

Punjab tried its hands on exports and farmers were given special incentives to produce durum wheat. The Punjab Warehousing Corporation played a major role in the promotion of the scheme and in persuading farmers to diversify. The state government has extended a premium of Rs 30 quintal for durum wheat to boost durum wheat cultivation.

The Wheat Research Directorate, the only institute of its kind at Karnal in Haryana, has now come up with grading procedures followed in the US and Canada. It says that FOB price fordurum was attractive and there was a need for an "organised effort" to export durum wheat from India.

The country has the potential to export substantial quantity of wheat of this variety to the world market on regular basis. The factors that make durum- an export commodity are: increasing global demand; value addition potential; minimum quarantine issues related to it; better price and impunity to disease Karnal Bunt. During a visit to the Directorate of Wheat Research, senior wheat scientists informed that global area under durum wheat was about 17 million hectares and production was of the order of 25 million tonnes. Thus durum wheat accounts for only four per cent of total world wheat production. Nearly 10-12 million tonnes of durum valued around $2600 million was traded. It is estimated that world's 50 per cent durum production is converted into "pasta"products, therefore, the quality of semolina, spaghetti colour, semolina yield, baking properties, protein and lustre were some of the importantcharacteristics taken into account by traders while fixing the price of commodity.

In India no specific categories amongst the durum have been specified. However, the All India Coordinated Wheat Improvement Project (AICWIP) centre and the Central Food technological Research Institute (CFTRI) have analysed the samples of durum for export and their quality parameters for five Indian durum cultivars (see the chart).

Of these , the test weight or hectolitre weight is considered most important as the test weight in grading the grain determines the plumpness of the grain and flour yield. Kernel size and shape are other two important features which influence the over all test weight of the grain. Bold grain with attractive shape, amber golden colour and lustre fetch better price in the international market.

Protein percentage gives the quantity of protein in the grain while sedimentation value indicates the quality of protein. Yellow colour of pasta products is due to the beta-carotene present in thegrain.

In their report to the project director, S Nagarajan and Jag Shoran have suggested that to sustain the exports, durum wheat should be procured separately and must be stored in silo, variety wise. Even mixing different varieties of durum could interfere with quality standards. Extent of foreign matter, admixtures, broken damaged, shrivelled and infected kernels can come in the way of trade and consignments could get rejected if proportion was higher. For instance in Asia, in the biggest grain market-Khanna in Punjab, the durum grain lot procured by traders was found to have admixture with bread wheat. The level of admixture was noted to be more than the standards prescribed by USA, EEC and other importers. Since the efficiency of existing cleaners and graders in our grain markets was not upto the mark, the wheat scientists have suggested that large modern machines with greater handling capacity should be installed for rapid and effective operations. The directorate of wheat research has now developedmethods to differentiate bread wheat admixtures right at the site of procurement and that too in a short span of time. They have also developed, durum varieties that posses a very high degree of resistance to leaf and stem rusts for cultivation in central and peninsular zone and resistant to leaf rust, yellow rust and karnal bunt for cultivation in north west plain.

The directorate of wheat research has found that the Indian durum has "enough scope for export provided necessary infrastructural facilities were developed for grain grading and handling and a good research and development back up was provided to boost production of durum wheat which is exported for macaroni, vermicelli, noodles, spaghetti, porridge and couscous.Important wheat grain markets need direct market information on the day to day FOB prices at the international markets.