U.S. Soy Farmers Participate in USSEC 5th Regional Dairy Nutrition Conference – MENA in Egypt

Immediate past United Soybean Board (USB) chairman and Ohio Soybean Council director John Motter and USSEC director and South Dakota Soybean Association treasurer Dawn Scheier traveled to Cairo, Egypt to participate in the USSEC 5th Regional Dairy Nutrition Conference – MENA from September 22 to September 25.
80 participants took part in this conference. Attendees hailed from major dairy farmers and feed millers in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
“It’s a great opportunity to interact with our customers in the MENA Region and bring professionals in the dairy industry to help guide and improve the management of dairies here in the Middle East and North Africa,” commented Mr. Motter. “Having nutritionists here helps our customers to better utilize our high quality U.S. soybean meal and by-pass protein.”
“This conference has been a great opportunity for USSEC to promote U.S. Soy,” Ms. Scheier added. “The MENA region has had a 100 percent increase in soy imports over last year’s marketing.”
Mr. Motter and Ms. Scheier spoke about U.S. quality, supply, and sustainable soy. During the sessions, topics on how to use soybean meal in a dairy cow’s diet were discussed by invited high profile nutritional speakers.
“This USSEC Regional Dairy Conference just continues to grow,” said David Gast, Director, Nutrition & Technical Services, Ag Processing. “I have participated in several of these conferences in the past and the 5th Regional Dairy Conference appears to be the largest ever with a great group of attendees. It allowed me to renew acquaintances from previous meetings and gave me the opportunity to meet new individuals. The meeting also provided numerous opportunities new market possibilities for soybean meal into the MENA region. It was a great conference and I look forward to participating in future USSEC conferences.”
Kevin Sinnott, President of Fornazor International said, “As a top 100 exporter from the U.S., it is always refreshing to meet with our current buyers and potential new customers in the MENA region. USSEC conferences have been and continue to be a great opportunity for Fornazor International to meet with old friends and potential new buyers in this ever-changing world of international sales.” He continued, “The MENA conferences are always scheduled in markets where we see the opportunity for growth of our animal feed exports from the U.S. We always look forward to these USSEC meetings where we can meet with our current friends and partners and cultivate new long term relationships into the future.”
“I have had the privilege as an invited speaker to attend the past two USSEC Regional Dairy Nutrition Conferences,” stated Marshall D. Stern, Morse-Alumni Distinguished Teaching Professor of Animal Science at Department of Animal Science, University of Minnesota. “From the perspective of a research scientist and educator, I find this meeting to be extremely valuable for the Middle Eastern dairy industry for various reasons. Attendees of this conference have the opportunity to learn firsthand about soybean production from prominent producers from the U.S., international transport of soybeans from a major shipping company, practical application of feeding soybeans from feed industry consultants, the science behind feed, and various soybean products from researchers. I highly recommend this conference to dairy producers, feed industry representatives, nutrition consultants, and others associated with the dairy industry.”
“International trade in agricultural products is growing,” added Charlie Macgregor, Ph.D., Marketing and Technical Service Manager at Soy Best. “In that regard, the USSEC MENA conference is important to Grain States Soya, Inc., the manufacturer of Soy Best High Bypass Soybean Meal. The conference provides a venue where our company can meet and network with new customers. The conference is a win-win for all participants, all the way to the end-user, the dairy producers.”
Loay Abiad, Nutritionist at Dairy Nutrition Plus comment on the conference said, “I was honored to be present among distinguished speakers and among a great audience afterwards. I guess that one of the main benefits of this conference is the location and the high quality of knowledge shared. Having world experts and researchers brought in to speak closely to local key people in our region genuinely supports our dairy industry. I have to also say that the conference was well designed by having speakers from the full cycle of soybean growers, international traders, protein utilization researchers, and field nutritionists.”

Dawn Scheier, USSEC director, speaking at the conference
John Motter, Immediate Past Chairman – USB, speaks at the conference
Award Attendance Certificates