The U.S. Grains & BioProducts Council sent a delegation of its top leadership to Saudi Arabia to strengthen relationships with key agribusinesses and identify new opportunities for U.S. corn, corn co-products and sorghum exports.
USGBC Chairman Mark Wilson, Vice Chairman Jay Reiners, Secretary-Treasurer Jay Fischer and President and CEO Ryan LeGrand traveled to the Kingdom alongside regional staff to meet with major feed millers, livestock producers and aquaculture operations.
"Officers' missions are a critical part of both the Council's market development strategies and its organizational structure, as potential customers highly value meeting with USGBC leaders," LeGrand said.
The delegation began by coordinating with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service to align market development strategies and identify collaboration opportunities. The team then met with Arabian Agricultural Services Company and MEFSCO, the country's leading feed miller and largest corn importer, to discuss how U.S.-origin corn can support their operations.
The group also visited the National Agricultural Development Company, one of Saudi Arabia's largest dairy producers with 110,000 head, to explore opportunities for distiller's dried grains with solubles inclusion in feed rations. A tour of FeedCo, one of the country's largest feed mills, provided insight into local demand and operational requirements for importing U.S. grains and co-products.
The mission concluded with a visit to the National Aquaculture Group, one of the world's largest fully integrated aquaculture operations, highlighting Saudi Arabia's growing seafood production and feed needs.
"The Kingdom continues to invest in strengthening its agricultural production and supply chains," Wilson said. "We expect U.S. corn and corn co-products to be a significant aspect of that expansion in the coming years."
