Starting next week, the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) will offer a weekly e-newsletter update with a selection of trade tools and resources targeted at farmers and others in the ag community looking to build their knowledge bases about global trade and exports.
A sign-up form for the update, which will arrive each Tuesday, is available here.
Most of the resources included in this new Trade Tools update will point readers to databases, news articles, reports or talking points that add context to the trade policy news of the day.
The content is meant to supplement regular webinars, advisory team meetings and trade school workshops held by the Council and its partners – and to get practical tools for trade education and advocacy into farmers’ hands on a regular basis.
“We see an ongoing need for resources about trade issues, and frankly a lot of demand for trade updates, especially during COVID restrictions,” said Melissa Kessler, USGC director of strategic relations, who leads the organization’s trade education efforts. “This new weekly update will point farmers directly to items we think will help them follow trade happenings.”
A typical update will include three or four resources, including a graphic that could be referenced or shared, links to content on the Council’s website and suggestions of other, notable outside resources. The weekly email will supplement information available online at the Council’s Learn About Trade page and in the Council’s Trade Toolkit.
“Trade and export issues change so rapidly, and we know there’s a huge need for information explaining what is happening right now as well as the context around those events,” Kessler said. “This type of background knowledge about trade is an expertise that farmers can build and use over the long-term, no matter what happens in the world or in grain markets.”
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.