USSEC recently teamed with soybean farmers Delbert Christensen of Iowa and Mark Albertson and Duane Dahlman of the Illinois Soybean Association to visit key tilapia producers in the Huila Department of Colombia.  Their objective was to leverage opportunities of increasing U.S. soy consumption by helping producers improve their operations.   USSEC International Aquaculture Marketing Manager Colby Sutter, Director of Americas Region Francisco de la Torre and Aqua Consultant Jairo Amezquita accompanied the delegation.

The team followed up on projects that tested soy-based feeds for tilapia, cachama, yamu and other native species with three of the largest tilapia producers in the Huila region.  The USSEC mission met with owners and CEOs from those companies at their farms.  Colombia’s largest tilapia production occurs in the floating cage systems located at the Betania Dam in Huila.  The country currently produces 65,000 metric tons (MT) of tilapia and aims to increase its production to 70,000 MT in 2014.  Approximate consumption in 2014 will be close to 30,000 MT of soy products.
As aquaculture production continues to increase in this region, USSEC will continue to promote U.S. soy and work to grow the market share of U.S. soy by providing technical assistance to Colombian tilapia producers.