The U.S. Grains Council (USGC) recognized Alejandro Gonzalez, regional consultant in Latin America (LTA), for his 30 years of service to the organization at its 21st International Marketing Conference and 64th Annual Membership Meeting in Guatemala City, Guatemala, held Feb. 14-16.
Gonzalez said that he has learned a lot about U.S. agriculture during his three decades of work with the Council, which he performs in addition to running a feed mill operation in Costa Rica.
“With the Council’s different activities, like visiting farms, talking to producers, understanding markets for different crops, etc., I have been able to understand and appreciate the work the agricultural industry does to feed the world,” Gonzalez said.
He was originally based out of the Council’s Mexico office before the Panama City, Panama, office opened and became the organization’s hub for LTA programing.
“Dr. Ricardo Celma, former USGC director in Mexico and my boss at that time, traveled with me to Guatemala City early in my tenure and we had a series of meetings with relevant industry participants,” Gonzalez said. “From those meetings, it was clear to me the idea of helping our customers solve logistical problems allows them to continue growing and developing their local industry.”
With the addition of a new USGC office and more frequent programs in the region, Gonzalez has seen a lot of changes over the course of his career, and he remains excited about the Council’s ability to advance agricultural and economic growth there.
“The development of the LTA region has been huge, and a lot of the industries have developed considerably,” Gonzalez said. “Overall volumes of imported grain have increased, per capita consumption of different products has seen big changes and trade is more open than ever, which means the Council should continue developing programs that demonstrate the advantage of using U.S. grains and co-products.”
Please join the Council in congratulating Alejandro on his 30 years of service.
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.