By Andi Anderson
In early June, Mark Mueller, Vice President of the Iowa Corn Growers Association (ICGA) and a farmer from Waverly, Iowa, traveled to Abidjan, Ivory Coast, to attend the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) Buyers and Sellers Conference. The event welcomed around 90 participants from Arabic and sub-Saharan Africa who are active in grain trade and livestock feeding industries.
Mueller represented U.S. corn farmers by sharing insights on the use of biotechnology in American agriculture. He explained how biotech tools help U.S. farmers grow more corn while reducing farm inputs, which improves both sustainability and productivity.
“The use of biotechnology has allowed U.S. corn farmers to continually increase our yields while decreasing our farm inputs,” said Mueller. “Attending the USGC Buyers and Sellers Conference in Ivory Coast was an opportunity to share about U.S. practices and strengthen relationships that promote future trade between the U.S. and Africa. These missions are incredibly important because as we continue to grow more corn, we need to continue developing new trade channels and relationships.”
During the event, Mueller participated in meetings with African grain buyers and discussed U.S. farming practices. He also visited poultry and aquaculture farms with other U.S. farmers and USGC staff. These visits helped them understand how African operations use feed grains and guided discussions on how U.S. corn can support their needs.
Iowa corn farmers, through the Iowa Corn Promotion Board (ICPB), work every year to build and strengthen trade ties. They focus on exporting value-added products such as ethanol, DDGS (distillers dried grains with solubles), corn gluten feed, and corn-fed meat in addition to whole kernel corn. These efforts help maintain and grow international markets for Iowa corn products.
For More Information contact Sydney Garrett, Public Relations Manager at sgarrett@iowacorn.org or 515-225-9242.
Photo Credit: gettyimages-zoran-zeremski
Categories: Iowa, Business, Crops, Corn