ANKENY, Iowa - For Delbert Christensen, an Audubon farmer who currently serves as president of the Iowa Soybean Association (ISA), October has been a busy month in spite of harvest delays. He and his wife, Mary, have hosted three trade delegations in recent weeks.

Most recently, on Tuesday, Oct. 27, Christensens’ visitors were from the Philippines. The group of 12 included executives and buyers from various feed and grain companies, as well as a livestock cooperative.

Christensen reports the latest visitors’ questions were focused on the quality of the soybeans being harvested, including their oil and meal content. They also asked how farmers will handle this year’s higher moisture soybeans.

“They were most interested in seeing the combines used for harvesting and to get an idea of the capacity of the equipment Iowa farmers use to get our crop moved to market,” Christensen said.

On Oct. 7, a trade delegation from Southeast Asia included commodity traders, feedmill executives and buyers from Indonesia, Thailand and China. The group traveled throughout Iowa, visiting several farms. They collected samples of beans, mostly from elevators because rain prevented their finding many farmers in the fields, and cataloged their samples to be analyzed later. At the Christensen farm they were particularly interested in seeing the hog operation.
 
The week of Oct. 12, four Chinese buyers stopped at the Christensen farm during a tour that also included visits to Monsanto’s Biofuture facility at Huxley, Lincolnway Energy (an ethanol plant near Nevada), the Heart of Iowa Cooperative at Nevada, and several AGP processing plants.

Christensen finds the personal contact with these international customers gratifying and says the visits are important.

“These meetings give buyers the feeling that Iowa soybean farmers are very focused on bringing high quality soybeans to market,” he says. “They are looking for high quality protein to feed their people. Through these personal meetings, the Iowa soybean industry gains the confidence of buyers that we are a reliable source of high quality soybeans and of a large supply that will cover export demands.”

Mary Christensen was most impressed by how genuinely interested the trade teams were in visiting with Iowa farmers, how respectfully they listened as their questions were answered and how courteous they were.
The visits are arranged by the ISA Market Development staff, working closely with the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC) and Ag Processing Inc. (AGP).Mary Christensen was most impressed by how genuinely interested the trade teams were in visiting with Iowa farmers, how respectfully they listened as their questions were answered and how courteous they were.

The visits are arranged by the ISA Market Development staff, working closely with the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC) and Ag Processing Inc. (AGP).

USSEC recently released key export data for U.S. Soy Export Marketing Year 2008/2009, which ended Sept. 30. It was the third record year of soybean exports in a row, with over 55 percent of the 2008 soybean crop exported. Soybean exports were up 11 percent from the previous year. China was by far the top soybean export market with over 686 million bushels, or 23 percent of the entire U.S. soybean crop.

Strong demand is expected to continue.

“As people continue to improve their diets by consuming more meat protein, world demand is projected to remain strong for soybeans and soybean meal,” ISA Director of Market Development Grant Kimberley says.  “International marketing is one of ISA’s top priorities, and we will continue our work to build demand and create customer preference for Iowa and U.S. soybeans. Hosting these trade teams is an important part of that effort.”

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