By: Manuel Sanchez, U.S. Grains Council Manager of Global Trade

Earlier this month, I visited Taiwan as part of a trade servicing mission with the main objective of gaining familiarity with local feed grain buyers and a deeper understanding of the local market environment.

Our long-term strategy in Taiwan is to sustain relationships with policymakers and industry leaders in order to preserve U.S. market share as well as to help facilitate the resolution to problems that may arise. We want to help ensure the maximum efficiency of domestic meat, milk and egg production. All of this will help our customers there be profitable and reinforce that food security can best be achieved through trade.

Taiwan is currently ranked as the sixth largest U.S. corn customer, importing more than 1.8 million metric tons (70.8 million bushels) of corn last marketing year (from Sept. 1, 2014 to Aug. 31, 2015). This is a 6 percent increase over the same period last year.

However, during the past decade, the U.S. grain industry has witnessed an erosion of U.S. market share from 100 percent a decade ago to 44 percent this year. Sustaining demand and increasing U.S. market share in this top market has been and will continue to be a priority for the U.S. Grains Council.

During my visit, I was able to present a harvest update and crop report to local buying groups within Taiwan. By providing this market with up-to-date, transparent, reliable information about the U.S. corn crop, we are hoping to continue a long-term dialogue with these customers. 

In addition to focusing on U.S. corn market share, this visit also included stops at two local food manufacturers to promote the use of U.S. barley in food.

Due to an aging population and a rash of food safety issues in Taiwan in 2014, the general public is now paying more attention to healthy food ingredients and healthy food products. This has created an opportunity to introduce healthy grain alternatives such as high beta-glucan food barley from the United States.

The potential for food barley in Taiwan is estimated at 150,000-250,000 tons (6.9-11.5 million bushels) annually, but that goal is only reachable by working in tandem with the local food industry. By meeting with these two manufacturers, we were able to answer questions about barley products and address questions about taste and applications of high beta-glucan food barley.

Click here to view more photos from this visit to Taiwan.