U.S. Corn And DDGS Sales Occur As A Result Of USDA’s Agricultural Trade Mission To Taiwan

Buyer-seller interactions promoted by the U.S. Grains Council in association with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) trade mission to Taiwan in April 2019 resulted in sales of U.S. corn and distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS). 

The Agricultural Trade Mission (ATM) was held from April 21 to 25 as part of a year-long campaign by the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) to mark the 40th anniversary of the U.S.-Taiwan Relations Act. The mission was led by Ken Isley, USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) administrator, and had dual goals of holding business meetings and briefings and conducting on-site visits to gain firsthand information about the Taiwanese market.  

During the ATM, the Council served as one of the cooperators facilitating business meetings between U.S. agribusiness and Taiwanese customers. The Council’s Taiwan Director Michael Lu had individual meetings with corn and DDGS suppliers, both representing Council members, as well as government officials from Nebraska. The Council also invited the top 10 U.S. corn and DDGS importers in Taiwan to meet with Council members. Taiwan regularly ranks in the top 10 U.S. corn importers and is a significant market for U.S. DDGS, with the U.S. supplying 95 percent of the DDGS imported into the country.

During the ATM’s time in Taiwan, the customers invited by the Council negotiated and concluded sales of 1,000 metric tons of corn and 3,200 metric tons of DDGS with a combined export value of $892,000. The Council invested $600 of MAP funds in support of this marketing program, generating a total return on investment (ROI) of $1,487 for every $1 MAP invested.