USSEC participated in the International Production and Processing Expo in Atlanta from January 28-30 by exhibiting a booth and by hosting a luncheon and presentation focusing on the link between soy quality and its impact on poultry profitability.

The USSEC-hosted luncheon took place on January 29, with consultant Jan van Eys of GANS, Inc. giving a presentation titled “Understanding Soy Quality to Enhance Profits in Poultry Production.”  This program focused on the description of the compound feed market, the role of soy in the feed market, evaluation parameters of soy in formulating poultry diets and the quality parameters in soy as they affect the formulation value of this ingredient.  Also emphasized were the significant quality differences between soybean meal from the U.S. and meal from other origins.  The presentation helped to raise key questions in terms of what quality parameters need to be applied and how they should evolve with the changes in the poultry industry (i.e., type of bird and management/feeding conditions).  Approximately 80 participants from a range of various counties and backgrounds attended this presentation and engaged in the program by asking pertinent questions.
The USSEC booth was visited by a large number of conference attendees, providing beneficial exchanges and positive exposure for USSEC.  The stand provided a meeting place for customers and helped to enhance the image of U.S. soy.  USSEC provided booth visitors with brochures, quality manuals, USB drives, and luggage identifiers.
A meeting was organized between USSEC and a Nigerian delegation with regards to an upcoming visit to that country by a World Initiative for Soy in Human Health (WISHH) delegation aimed at studying and providing formulation recommendations for the poultry market in Nigeria.  The meeting took place on January 30 and was viewed by participants as informative and constructive in terms of future work and development in the region/country.  Twenty-four key leaders from the Nigerian poultry and feed industry attended the breakfast/focus group session sponsored by USSEC.
USSEC’s presence at IPPE 2014 allowed multiple discussions and exchanges about the world wide agricultural situation with a logical focus on poultry production and the role of raw materials in the poultry feed production.  Poultry feed represents approximately 40 – 50 % of the total worldwide soybean meal utilization.  Participants representing Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa attended this expo and several USSEC consultants traveled with customers from Asia, the Middle East and China.