Fertilisers

The health of the wheat plant and its grain yield are both affected by the nutrients it has available.  Fertilisers are applied to land in order to increase nutrients available to crops.  These are generally a combination of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.  For wheat, nitrogen is the most important as it is used in the generation of healthy leaves which will generate a greater yield.  Nitrogen fertilisers also help to raise the protein level in wheat grain.  It is a combination of the quantity and quality of wheat protein that creates additional value for flour millers; for bread wheat, millers generally look for a protein level of 13% (dry matter basis), while protein of around 11% is used for biscuit flour milling.  The quality of protein is mainly determined by the variety, so millers are very selective about which varieties they buy.