By: Alvaro Cordero, U.S. Grains Council manager of global trade

Mexico is the top customer of U.S. sorghum but continual education on the product plays an important role in sustaining the market. In an effort to highlight the value of sorghum as a high performance grain, the U.S. Grains Council escorted a team of Mexican end-users throughout Texas this week to receive a firsthand look at the U.S. sorghum industry and the recent enhancements this industry has been exploring.

The group visited a USDA Agricultural Research station in Lubbock, Texas, that is studying how to increase yields/productivity, increase cold tolerance and increasing tolerance (the “stay-green” trait) in U.S. sorghum. Improvements in these traits would allow sorghum to better adapt to a wider range of environments and will increase farmers’ productivity.

One of the key advancements the team observed was the research towards developing a multi-seed trait in sorghum that has the potential to double U.S. sorghum yields to 140 bushels per acre. Already five seed companies are working towards developing this trait into successful commercial hybrids, possibly within three to four years. While there is still work to be done, the Mexican team was very impressed with the U.S. sorghum industry’s progress.

Through programs like this the Council continues to showcase the U.S. marketing advantage and proximity to the Mexican market in order to sustain and increase market share in one of our most important markets.