Export Exchange 2018 Prompts Sales To Buyers In Southeast Asia

Using Market Access Program (MAP) funds, the U.S. Grains Council’s (USGC’s) Southeast Asia (SEA) office hosted a large delegation of buyers to the Council’s biannual Export Exchange conference in 2018. Co-sponsored by the Council, Growth Energy and the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), Export Exchange offers attendees an unparalleled opportunity to meet and build relationships with domestic suppliers of corn, distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS), sorghum, barley and other commodities.

Pre- and post-conference, the Council took high-level feed buyers from some of the largest regional players in Southeast Asia across the country to further their relationships and integration with the U.S. agricultural system.

A major component of the decision-making process in Southeast Asia is trust and familiarity. By providing an opportunity for buyers to come the United States, meet exporters face-to-face, walk through grain fields and witness product being loaded onto vessels, the United States gains a competitive edge over alternative destinations.

A survey of the team participants upon completion of the program tabulated $57 million of corn, sorghum and co-products was sold into Southeast Asia as a result of Export Exchange. The Council invested $200,700 MAP funds in support of this program, for a return on investment (ROI) of $284 for every $1 invested.