NorthwestJanuary 26, 1996

Associated Press

MOSCOW Some Northwest wheat growers and industry leaders traveled to Australia this month, but the trip was far from friendly.

Six representatives from the Idaho and Washington wheat commissions returned Sunday from a two-week trip that took them from Australian farms and port facilities to a face off with officials from the Australian Wheat Board, the National Farmers Federation and the Grange Council of Australia.

Don Ball, a Potlatch farmer and Idaho Wheat Commission member, said the delegation was breaking new ground. He said tour groups and individual growers had visited Australia before, but the Australian Wheat Board had never dealt with an organization that wanted an inside look at their industry.

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"The wheat board didn't know what to do with us," Ball said.

Neither did the local media.

One daily newspaper, The Australian, carried headlines in a Jan. 20 edition proclaiming "US wheat growers attack local industry."

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