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China wants U.S. ag goods, online

The Midwest will host the country’s first ever e-commerce exchange conference to help farmers and food businesses export to China.

Kevin Robson with Michigan Farm Bureau tells Brownfield Alibaba, China’s e-commerce version of Amazon, wants to add agricultural commodities to their platform.  “With their growing population, their growing standard of living, they have opportunity and they want American products.  Essentially they want American agricultural products on their shelves and in their country.”

He says large scale growers and processors are most ideal to export to China, but even small scale businesses can be ideal with online marketing.  “Anytime we can have a new market, a new channel for distributing our goods outside of our state borders and even our nation’s borders, I feel is definitely a step in the right direction.”

Robson says Detroit was selected for Gateway ’17 after Michigan’s Governor Rick Snyder and director of agriculture have continued to build trade relationships with China.

Alibaba officials say by next year, China’s online spending is expected be greater than the rest of the world combined.

AUDIO: Interview with Kevin Robson