Many Chinese soy customers, including those who use U.S. soybean meal-based feed for poultry, livestock and fish will travel to the U.S. in September to visit soybean farms and participate in the 2013 U.S. Soy Global Trade Exchange in Davenport, IA.  China is U.S. soy’s largest international destination, importing 849 million bushels of whole U.S. soybeans in the most recent marketing year.

According to USSEC China Country Director Xiaoping Zhang, these cross cultural activities are important to build and nurture relationships between the two countries and to increase market demand for U.S. soy.  “The Global Trade Exchange provides an opportunity for our customers to learn about the technology that U.S. farmers are using and to see the facilities and infrastructure, all of which helps build preference for U.S. soy,” he states.
Chinese customers, continues Mr. Zhang, already commonly accept U.S. soymeal as the most cost-effective feed.  In order to continue this preference, Mr. Zhang believes that U.S. farmers must continue to select high-quality varieties of soy that provide higher protein and oil and to avoid combining treated seeds with harvested soybeans as shipments with treated seeds mixed in are unaccepted by Chinese government agencies.  China is looking for the quality of U.S. soy to continue to improve as the demand for more high protein meal continues to grow.  Finally, according to Mr. Zhang, “Chinese customers already appreciate the many advantages of U.S. soy, including the fact that it’s an abundant and sustainable supply; delivery is reliable and timely; the quality is consistent; and the customer service is better.  They also admire U.S. farmers’ use of advanced farming practices and biotechnology; the infrastructure and logistic services; the open and transparent trading system; and the technical services they receive from U.S. soy industry organizations.”