Last week, the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) and the United Sorghum Checkoff Program (USCP) conducted a promotional mission in China to boost demand for U.S. sorghum. The delegation aimed to showcase the quality of U.S. sorghum, particularly its suitability for baijiu production, the world’s most popular distilled spirit in China.
The mission included presenting findings from a Jiangnan University study commissioned by the Council, which confirmed the high quality and abundance of U.S. sorghum for baijiu production. “The encouraging findings of this study will be used in Council programs to assure Chinese buyers that U.S. sorghum is a high-quality and abundant resource,” said Manuel Sanchez, USGC director in China.
Sanchez and USGC Program Manager Ellie Yan were joined by USCP Director Macy Mueller, USCP Past Chairman and USGC Asia Advisory Team Lead Adam Schindler, and Cargill Sorghum Line Product Manager Kyle Hedrick in Guangzhou on June 2. Over the week, they held meetings with U.S. Agricultural Trade Office (ATO) staff in Guangzhou and Beijing, strategized to increase U.S. market share, and presented the study results to major grain import companies.
The team also traveled to Shandong Province for the fourth annual U.S.-China Agriculture Roundtable on June 7, where the Council signed a memorandum of understanding with the Shandong Provincial Government. This MOU aims to enhance cooperation on promotional events between Chinese importers and U.S. producers. Schindler presented on U.S. agriculture’s commitment to sustainable farming practices during the event.
The mission concluded with meetings with corn and sorghum processing companies in Shandong to understand their needs for U.S. products and how the Council and USCP can facilitate purchases. “This mission was outstanding because it allowed the Council to meet with so many different stakeholders in the export chain,” Sanchez said. “I’m glad to have had representatives from USCP and Cargill with us to provide growing and logistical outlooks to buyers.”
The promotional mission is expected to strengthen the understanding of the Chinese market’s demand for U.S. sorghum and help U.S. producers meet it, further increasing U.S. agricultural exports to China.
