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Wisconsin and Iowa soybean producers in Asia
A couple of soybean growers from Wisconsin and one from Iowa are in Asia this week participating in a number of U.S. Soybean Export Council Market Outlook Conferences.
Kevin Hoyer of West Salem, Wisconsin attended the conference in Shanghai and also visited some hog operations, crush plants and an aquaculture research facility. Hoyer says those attending the conference expressed they are pleased with the quality of U.S. soybeans and the speed of delivery. “They were also very interested in learning about the supply-and-demand situation in the U.S.” Hoyer says one of the hog farms he visited were getting soybeans from the DeLong Company in Wisconsin.
Nancy Kavazanjian of Beaver Dam, Wisconsin attended two conferences in Japan, one for those in the animal feed side of the industry, the other for the soy food industry. Kavazanjian says attendees were glad to hear about the quality of the U.S. soybean crop this year. They were also interested in learning more about the U.S. soybean sustainability protocols.
Laura Foell of Schaller, Iowa went to Taiwan and the conference in Taipei. She met with one of the largest soybean crushers in the country. “They have 52 percent of the crush business in the country.” 63 percent of the soy they are crushing comes in by Panamax, 37 percent is by container from Illinois via Long Beach. At the conference, she talked about what she is doing on her farm and how she talks to consumers about genetically modified soybeans. “I made the point that we are not here saying genetically modified is the answer, we’re saying it’s a choice for the farmer. We’re not pitting those who grow genetically modified against those who use non-gmo or those who grow organic. There is a place in the system for all three.
USSEC CEO Jim Sutter says while there is some resistance to genetically modified crops around the globe, “generally the international trade in soybeans is for genetically modified soybeans.” Approximately 95 percent of the soybeans grown in the U.S. are genetically modified and South America has about the same mix, “if not a little more.”
USSEC Regional Director for North Asia, Paul Burke says in Japan, consumers are not given a choice between gm and non-gm while in Taiwan the products are both labeled and on the supermarket shelves and the gm products. He says given the choice, consumers are buying gm products with price being a factor in that decision.
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