Get to know SSGA’s identity-preserved technical advisers

By Kaelyn Platz

The Specialty Soya and Grains Alliance (SSGA) takes pride in developing ways to reach foreign markets through funding from the ATP grant. The grant has enabled SSGA to hire identity-preserved (IP) technical advisers to address issues in their designated regions to help enable increased exports by communicating about the benefits of IP crops and their traceability, reporting on trends, competitors and transportation and build upon SSGA’s value of providing resources that communicate the quality, diversity and availability of specialty soy and grains. The three advisers will represent Southeast Asia, North Asia and Europe.

The Southeast Asia adviser is Hoa Huynh. Huynh has an extensive background working for the U.S. government in a variety of capacities. He has served as acting assistant deputy administrator, area director for North Asia and Agriculture Trade Office (ATO) coordinator of the Office of Foreign Service Operations, Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS). Huynh also completed an assignment as director of the ATO at the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou, China.

Huynh was the regional agricultural counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Sofia, Bulgaria. In addition to Bulgaria, he also covered Romania, Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Kosovo. He has served as director of the ATO at the American Institute in Taiwan and U.S. agricultural attaché to the United Kingdom.

Hunyh joined the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) FAS in 1990 as an agricultural economist and served in various capacities at FAS’ Headquarters in Washington, D.C., in between his overseas assignments. In 1999, Hunyh successfully negotiated the market access for agricultural and food products chapter of the U.S.-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA). The BTA established a solid foundation for the current flourishing exports of U.S. agri-food products to Vietnam.

“After almost 30 years of serving U.S. agriculture, I’m very excited and grateful to again have the privilege to assist our farming community in developing, maintaining and expanding overseas markets, especially in Southeast Asia, for U.S. IP soybeans and specialty grains,” Huynh says.  “I look forward to working with specialty grains farmers to increase exports of their crops abroad.”

Huynh is a graduate of Oregon State University, where he received an MBA, an MA in multidisciplinary studies (MAIS) degree and a Bachelor of Science degree in economics. Hunyh is fluent in Vietnamese, Chinese Mandarin, Bulgarian and French.

The adviser for North Asia is Alyson Segawa. Segawa began her career by managing a multimillion-dollar portfolio of international market development projects for a leading international affairs management consulting firm. Through this experience, she gained access in 15 international markets, including North America, Europe, Latin America and Asia.

With her knowledge in international markets, Segawa decided to found her own business, Eliasan Consulting, in 2018. Her extensive experience has enabled her to be able to pinpoint market development strategies and tactics to be able to support SSGA’s goals.

“I am looking forward most to being an advocate for IP soya and specialty grains within the Northeast Asia region,” she says. “It sounds like there is a lot of real opportunity there to grow the different export markets for the industry.”

Segawa received her bachelor’s degree in international studies and Spanish from Seattle University and earned her master’s degree in international business and policy from Georgetown University.

She has been a guest speaker for numerous organizations such as U.S. Agricultural Export Development Council, Trade Development Alliance of Greater Seattle, and Washington State Wine Commission. She also serves as a member of the U.S. National Small Business Association (NSBA) Leadership Council.

Eugene Philhower is the IP technical adviser for Europe. After receiving his bachelor’s degree in agricultural sciences from Rutgers University and a master’s degree in agricultural economics from the University of California, Davis, Philhower started his career for the U.S. government.

In total, he spent 33 years in numerous different positions for the government. He spent five years with the Agency for International Development and later joined USDA’s FAS serving as an overseas post in Brussels, Belgium; Geneva, Switzerland; Lima, Peru; London, UK and various positions in Washington, D.C., including three years as chief of staff and most recently as director of the Fragile Markets Office.

Since leaving his government job, he worked as an adjunct professor at Delaware Valley University, teaching a course on global agriculture and trade.

Philhower learned that he loved teaching, but realized that he had found a passion in learning himself.

“It is always a good thing to be learning something new,”Philhower says. “I view my role as a matchmaker. I know that U.S. producers can produce the crop, so I must figure out the demand and how to put the two of them together within the conditions of the markets and the countries.”

In addition to his expertise, Philhower speaks French, Spanish and a bit of German and Nepali.