To support and promote U.S. agriculture’s market share in South Korea, the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) and the Korea Feed Association (KFA) hosted a Joint International Market Outlook Conference in Seoul on Nov. 7. The goal of the program was to support Korean industry stakeholders as they make business plans for next year and ease concerns about ocean freight and foreign currency pressures.
More than 220 participants were on hand to hear from industry experts and learn about the latest U.S. and global corn supply and demand, market outlook for distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) and any challenges facing the international grain market.
“It’s very encouraging to see such strong interest in learning about U.S. corn and DDGS supplies, and that the Korean feed and corn processing industries understand the benefits of U.S. corn and co-products,” said Haksoo Kim, USGC director in South Korea. “Additionally, partnering further with the KFA will open up even more avenues to fortify the bonds between U.S. suppliers and Korean buyers in the future.”
The KFA also provided an overview on the direction of Korea’s livestock policy, ocean freight information and details on foreign currency rates and their impact on the Korean agriculture industry.
The event, moderated by Kim, began with opening remarks from USGC Vice President Cary Sifferath, U.S. Embassy Ag Minister Counselor Mark Dries and KFA Chairman Young Heo.
Guy Allen, senior economist at Kansas State University, spoke about U.S. and global corn and soybean markets and gave an update on the 2023 U.S. corn crop. Two U.S. farmers, Jon Rosenstiel of the Illinois Corn Marketing Board, and David Vipond of the Minnesota Corn Research and Promotion Council, also joined the event virtually to share their personal experiences with this year’s corn yield, harvest progress and sustainability.
Additionally, POET Export Manager Andrew Baker provided details about U.S. DDGS supply and demand, U.S. ethanol policies and global container logistics.
“Attendees enjoyed hearing the latest on the U.S. corn crop and global logistics straight from farmers and market experts,” Kim said. “These events build buyers’ trust in U.S. products because they can speak directly to the people growing their food, feed and fuel, and you can’t put a price on that. We expect these efforts by the Council to soon lead to increased exports of new crop corn and DDGS to Korea.”
About The U.S. Grains Council
The U.S. Grains Council develops export markets for U.S. barley, corn, sorghum and related products including distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) and ethanol. With full-time presence in 28 locations, the Council operates programs in more than 50 countries and the European Union. The Council believes exports are vital to global economic development and to U.S. agriculture’s profitability. Detailed information about the Council and its programs is online at www.grains.org.