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Iowa Corn Promotion Board Supports Export Exchange 2010
The Iowa Corn Promotion Board (ICPB) recently pledged its support of Export Exchange 2010 to be held Oct. 6-8, 2010, in Chicago, Ill. The event—co-sponsored by the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) and the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA)—is an international trade conference focused around the export of U.S. distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) and coarse grains.

“Iowa’s corn growers have been a long-time leader in developing international market growth,” said Craig Floss, ICPB CEO. “Corn farmers in Iowa and across the nation benefit from strong export markets and the Export Exchange 2010 is key way to support a global economy.”

Export Exchange 2010 will bring together more than 150 international buyers of U.S. DDGS and coarse grains with more than 300 U.S. producers and agribusinesses. The Council is providing sponsorship for international trade teams from more than 25 countries. These participants represent nearly 80 percent of the global export market for DDGS and coarse grains. The conference will address critical issues facing U.S. exports and seek to educate and build awareness of U.S. DDGS and coarse grains among international buyers.

“We are proud to have the Iowa Corn Promotion Board as a major sponsor of the Export Exchange 2010,” said USGC President and CEO Thomas C. Dorr. “Iowa’s corn growers have played a key role in U.S. Grains Council leadership for 50 years. We appreciate their continued support and leadership.”

Click here for more information about the Export Exchange 2010.

New Sorghum Flour Offers More Options for U.S. Consumers with Potential to Reach Overseas Markets, Too
When most people think of whole grain, multi-grain or gluten-free baked products, sorghum is not the first ingredient that comes to mind. But all that may change with ADM’s introduction of sorghum flour for gluten-free and multi-grains applications. The product, which is made in the form of both white and whole grain white sorghum flour, made its debut at this year’s Institute of Food Technologists Expo in Chicago where attendees learned that sorghum flour can be used to make anything from gluten-free cookies to gluten-free pancakes, cakes and more.

“Consumers are becoming more familiar with gluten-free diets and products as awareness of celiac disease and wheat intolerance increases,” said Brook Carson of ADM Milling. “In addition, food manufacturers are interested in ADM’s sorghum flour due to the reasonable price and the variety it offers. Having another ‘tool in the kit’ is always appreciated by food formulators.”

There are signs the product could also be of interest to consumers overseas. The U.S. Grains Council this year has hosted two international sorghum food teams to the United States representing Europe and Central America.

It is Europe’s interest in gluten-free products in particular that highlights a large potential market for sorghum flour. “In 2008, the U.S. market for gluten-free products was $1.5 billion, and it is expected to reach $2.6 billion in 2010,” said Florentino Lopez of the United Sorghum Checkoff Program. “Right now the European market already surpasses that total which means ADM has introduced a product that can quickly gain popularity in the industry and among consumers outside of the United States.” Lopez said the changing landscape in consumer interest in whole grains and gluten-free foods makes a strong case for the marketing of such a product both domestically and internationally.

For the time being, ADM plans to focus on the domestic market when it comes to touting the benefits of its new sorghum flour however, the health advantages are universal. The whole grain white sorghum flour provides many of the nutritional benefits associated with whole grains such as antioxidants, fiber and vitamins. To health-conscious consumers, those are benefits worth paying attention to – and they may also be benefits that redefine consumers’ notions of sorghum and its use in various food products.

Chinese Grain Buyers Tour Generates Optimism for Future US Exports
A team of Chinese grain importers recently completed a 10 day U.S. tour to learn more about U.S. agricultural operations and shore up relationships with U.S. grain suppliers. Team members represented interests from Beijing and Shandong Province in the north, the central provinces of Hubei, Fujian and Shanghai, and the southern provinces of Guangdong and Guangxi. The team travelled through Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and California.

Since the U.S. Grains Council first opened the door to U.S. distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) in China, imports of the U.S. product have grown from virtually nothing in the first half of 2009 to 651,000 metric tons in the second half of the year. The grains industry anticipates that the Chinese will purchase 1.5 million tons of U.S. DDGS in 2010, with some experts saying there is a realistic possibility for double that amount.

China has become Asia’s largest importer of U.S. DDGS as it is used primarily in the poultry sector, with significant potential for growth in dairy and swine production.

“The Chinese team has focused principally on corn, which, along with soybeans, are the primary commodities in which the Chinese are interested in expanding U.S. purchases,” said Kevin Latner, USGC senior director in China, who accompanied the group.

“Team members, evenly divided between traders and millers, are also interested in establishing direct contact with producers and transporters so they can originate U.S. purchases,” Latner said. “To that end, team members are studying production and identification of quality characteristics, logistics and DDGS handling and documentation,” he said.

Donna Jeschke, director of the Illinois Corn Marketing Board, met with the team July 25 in Chicago to help them learn about the commodity sampling done before the product is shipped. Jeschke said she and her husband learned when visiting farms in northern China, that despite differences in the scale of their farming operations, Chinese and U.S. farmers share the same concerns about seed, prices, bugs and weeds.

The team had a good tour of the United States, Mr. Qiang “Hanver” Li, chairman of the large, state-owned JC Intelligence Co. in Shanghai said. Speaking through an interpreter, Mr. Li said his company would continue to purchase corn and soybeans, and that the visit left him very confident that U.S. grain producers and handlers have the ability to meet export agreements.

This is good for both the United States and China, Mr. Li said, adding that if the United States has a good harvest, China will buy more, which is good for the balance of trade.

While in the United States, the Chinese team toured three ethanol plants, two in Iowa and one in Indiana.

“We had 14 of the top 20 Chinese DDGS buyers tour a modern ethanol plant,” said Randy Ives, senior vice president for Hawkeye Gold in Menlo, Iowa, one of the team’s stops. “It was fantastic! The team members who visited Hawkeye Gold did a great job of educating themselves about ethanol production prior to their arrival at the plant and they generated sound questions,” he said.

There may also be other reasons for optimism about increasing DDGS demand over the next five years. One avenue of growth is the use of U.S. DDGS for aquaculture in parts of Asia, and “China may eventually see that as an opportunity as well,” Ives said.

Corn Purchases in Tunisia Boost US Market Share
Seven recent purchases of U.S. corn by Tunisia have driven the U.S. market share in the country up from 0 to 39 percent, according to the U.S. Grains Council. The purchases, which have taken place within the last three months, total 143,500 metric tons (5.6 million bushels) to date.

According to Cary Sifferath, USGC senior director in the Mediterranean and Africa, the purchases are the result of two things working in favor of the United States: the on-going communication between the Council’s staff in Tunis and major Tunisian feed grain importers; and more expensive corn from other sources.

“We’ve stayed in regular contact with feed grain importers by updating them on all the price movements in grain and freight and by making sure they keep U.S. corn in mind when making their buying decisions,” Sifferath said.

He also noted that Council programs that have included Tunisian importers have been influential as well. Programs such as buyer missions to the United States and trips to Morocco to study beef and dairy production expansion under Council programs there have kept U.S. corn on Tunisian importers’ radars.

“These trips have helped build relationships and open the door to the discussion of price and why buying U.S. corn on a regular basis is the best option,” he said.

The other factor contributing to the uptick in U.S. corn sales to Tunisia relates to developments taking place in the Black Sea region. Corn sourced from the Ukraine, Romania, Russia and Hungary has become more expensive than U.S. corn due to dry growing conditions in Black Sea countries.

Sifferath said this reality has also helped keep the door open for U.S. corn imports into other North African destinations.

Taiwanese, Chinese Companies Join to Produce, Market US Corn-based Bioplastics
While U.S. corn can already be found in Taiwan in the form of plastic cups, containers and similar products, it now has the opportunity to spread to other parts of Asia as the demand for polylactic acid (PLA) products grows. Recently, China’s Xiamen Wei Meng Environmental Materials Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of Taiwan’s Wei Mon Industry Co. Ltd., announced the production and marketing of PLA products.

Derived from corn, PLA goods are gaining in popularity across Asia due to their biodegradable characteristics. Taiwan is a regional pioneer in the bioplastics industry because of its relationship with NatureWorks LLC, based in Blaire, Neb., which uses corn grown in the United States to create PLA materials under the brand name Ingeo.

According to Clover Chang, U.S. Grains Council director in Taiwan, the increasing trend of sourcing products from China has driven the interest in PLA products within China’s export market.

“Environmental concerns play an important role, and PLA is still the most viable option among all kinds of bioplastics,” he said. “Ingeo PLA, which is made from U.S. corn, is especially popular. It is the most wanted option in Taiwan, China and the surrounding region.”

While PLA is seen as a key product within China’s export industry, Chang said domestically, China has not quite reached the stage where PLA production can really take off.

“Although there are several PLA manufacturers in China, the country is unable to produce quality products in a cost-effective manner the way Wei Meng Xianmen Environmental Materials and Wei Mon Industry can,” he said. “That’s why this partnership is such big news.”

Wei Mon is using Wei Meng Environmental Materials Co. Ltd. as a base for producing corn-based PLA in southeast China. Wei Meng is also the producer of PLA-coated paper materials branded as Pland Paper® and Pland Paper® products such as cups, soup containers, lunch boxes and other items.

Chang said Wei Meng Environmental Materials aims to use up to 2,000 metric tons of PLA resins (the equivalent of 5,000 metric tons or 197,000 bushels of corn) within the first year of its partnership with Wei Mon as marketing efforts are expected reach Hong Kong and Macau’s markets as well.

New Manager of Programs
Sean Callanan joins the Council as the new Manager of Programs. Sean is a graduate of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Sean previously worked for Townsend Management, LLC as the Director of International Programs. You can contact Sean at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

COUNCIL ACTIVITY CALENDAR

July 29-August 11: The Council is organizing a Southeast Asia DDGS Road Show to educate the region’s end-users (nutritionists, feed formulators, and feed technicians) on U.S. DDGS use in poultry rations. The program will take place in four key Southeast Asia markets where the poultry sector plays a major role in feed consumption: Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines. In each market, the Council will organize seminars, workshops and one-on-one consultations with key customers. The program will coincide with the Asian Feed Quality Conference, organized by the Asian Feed Magazine. For more information, contact Kimberly Karst, USGC manager of international operations for Asia, at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

July 31-August 8: The Council will sponsor a team of Japanese feed and food barley and trade industry representatives to travel to the Idaho, Washington, Montana and North Dakota. The team will visit major barley producing regions and meet with key U.S. grower and trade industry representatives to gain updated information on the 2010 barley crop, and the supply and demand situation. For more information, contact Kimberly Karst, USGC manager of international operations for Asia, at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

August 5-13: The Council will sponsor a six member team of Korean high school teachers to travel to the Washington, D.C., and St. Louis, Mo., to study how agricultural biotechnology is developed, tested, approved, grown and utilized within the United States. The team will also gain a better understanding on the safety and benefits of the science-based technology, the future of and the stewardship of the technology. Additionally, the participants will learn the fact that the safe and appropriate application of biotechnology is a significant contributor to reliable supplies of quality and affordable food, feed, fiber and fuel. Also, this program will help them learn how U.S. institutions educate students and consumers on biotech foods. Improving their understanding on the science-based technology and introducing the educational tools used in the United States, the participants will confidently and effectively deliver objective and balanced messages about agricultural biotechnology and biotech foods. For more information, contact Kimberly Karst, USGC manager of international operations for Asia, at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .