Last week, U.S. Grains Council (USGC) Chairwoman Verity Ulibarri and USGC President and CEO Ryan LeGrand traveled to Beijing and Hong Kong, China to meet with key industry counterparts and join the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agribusiness Trade Mission (USDA’s ATM).
LeGrand and Ulibarri were joined by USGC Director in China Manuel Sanchez, USGC Program Manager Ellie Yan and Texas Grain Sorghum Producers Director of Member Services Ty Wilson on the mission to focus on U.S.-China trade relations for the benefit of U.S. growers and discuss market opportunities presented by SAF.
“China is a vital market for U.S. growers, adding more than $3 billion to the industry’s bottom line by purchasing more than 12 million metric tons of grains in all forms in marketing year 2023/2024,” Ulibarri said. “As the second most populous country in the world, China’s demand for all agricultural products cannot be understated, and its interest in SAF could be a game changer for U.S. producers due to the immense demand it would create.”
Before the ATM, the Council’s delegation attended meetings in Beijing and Guangdong Province with crucial public and private stakeholders with the mutual interest of maintaining healthy agricultural trade between the nations. The team also toured grain import facilities and research centers to discuss import capacity and current and future use applications for U.S. feed grains in China.
After making the journey to Hong Kong, the Council participated in a USDA cooperator roundtable for an overview of U.S. agricultural promotional strategies and opportunities in China.
The program concluded with a roundtable focused on SAF use in China and U.S. producers’ position to meet potential increased demand. LeGrand spoke about the Council’s work in promoting SAF worldwide and other attendees, including Marquis Energy, a USGC member, offered industry and governmental perspectives on production and trade.
“It’s always inspiring to see U.S. cooperators and Council members come together for the betterment of the agricultural industry, producers and customers alike,” LeGrand said. “The Council has a longstanding history of working with the Chinese market and our efforts in promoting SAF are the next step in that rich partnership.”
Learn more about the Council’s work in China here.
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.