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New USB chair says soy trade remains strong

The new chair of the United Soybean Board says she’s optimistic about soy exports in 2023 despite some transportation challenges this year.

Meagan Kaiser says low Mississippi River levels have been a concern for exporters. “We saw what that did to our basis,” she said. “We had wonderful prices for farmers, but then our basis was crippling. It also caused the question of if we can continue to be a reliable source on time.”

But she tells Brownfield USB has been making investments to ramp up transportation infrastructure.

“Two-million-dollars to investigate what’s preventing us from dredging the lower Mississippi River,” Kaiser said. “That money was used for planning and design. But then that investment was met with a $245 million investment from the federal government and the state of Louisiana.”

Kaiser says the organization works with the US Soybean Export Council to help expand soy markets around the world.