In November 2009, the U.S. Grains Council, in partnership with the Hammoudeh Dairy Farm, initiated a distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) feeding trial in Amman, Jordan. Results of the study, which completed last month, were “extremely satisfactory� with improvement in both daily milk production and cost savings on feed ingredients, according to Joe O’Brien, USGC regional director in the Middle East and Subcontinent.

“There is a significant amount of interest in DDGS in the region,� said O’Brien. “Only a few months into the test, purchases were made of U.S. DDGS along with U.S. corn and other U.S. commodities. Before this, no DDGS had been imported into Jordan.�

The Council estimates Jordan’s domestic use will exceed 100,000 metric tons per year.

Before the Council entered the market, there was little knowledge of the feed ingredient. For the past two years, the Council developed a relationship with the Hammoudeh farm, Jordan’s largest milk producer, providing market information and education on how to use and import the product.

“The Council’s success with introducing DDGS into Jordan is attributed to the relationship with Hammoudeh and the market development work of the Council. This cooperation and its success is a direct reflection of effective international marketing,� said Chris Corry, USCG senior director of international marketing.

A Dairy Field Day was held at the Hammoudeh Farm following the trial to showcase the use of DDGS in dairy farming throughout the Middle East. Representatives from all of Jordan’s commercial dairy producers were in attendance, along with importers and members of the academic community.

“The current and upcoming issues of Bovine & Ovine, a regional Middle East and North African dairy and agricultural publication, feature the Hammoudeh trial and use of U.S.-supplied DDGS and its benefits. News this valuable U.S.-supplied ingredient is becoming part of daily feed rations is now being spread across industry throughout this wide region,� said O’Brien.