Philippines trip sparks fruitful conversations

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The Philippines is a country that relies on agricultural imports for food and food ingredients and also has a strong affinity for American brands, making it an ideal place for the Specialty Soya and Grains Alliance to visit and talk about the high-quality, identity-preserved field-crop products supplied by its members.

Last week, SSGA Chair Rob Prather and Manager of Strategic Programs Shane Frederick traveled to Manila to participate in a U.S. Department of Agriculture-sponsored trade mission that included opportunities to engage with potential buyers, receive in-depth market briefings from Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) and industry trade experts and participate in site visits.

They were part of a U.S. delegation, led by FAS Administrator Daniel Whitley, that included representatives from 29 agribusinesses and farm organizations, as well as representatives from several state departments of agriculture. The trade mission’s goal was to promote two-way cooperation and build trade opportunities between the United States and the Philippines.

“The Philippines is an excellent market for U.S. farm and food products, and we look forward to introducing a diverse group of companies and organizations to new export opportunities there,” Whitley said prior to the trade mission. “U.S. brands sell very well in the Philippines, where consumers regard our products as safe, reliable and of good quality. The United States has enjoyed a long and prosperous trading relationship with the Philippines, and this mission is an ideal opportunity to further expand our exports there.”

During two days of business-to-business meetings, SSGA was able to connect with about 20 companies. Frederick directed buyers to the SSGA Trades Lead web page, as well as to SSGA University, where they could learn more about the U.S. identity preserved system and how identity preserved field crops can make their products better. Additionally, it was an opportunity to show the new U.S. Identity Preserved mark and assurance plan and talk about it with businesses, FAS officials and others involved with trade between the United States and the Philippines.

“This trip was a great opportunity to start new relationships and continue conversations we started with some of the virtual events and presentations we participated in over the last two years,” Prather said. “As successful as some of those online opportunities were, it was just as important for us to meet those businesses in person and see the potential for ourselves.”

Prather spent the previous week in Vietnam along with SSGA Technical Adviser for Southeast Asia Hoa Huynh. In the coming months, technical advisers Alyson Segawa (North Asia) and Philip Shull (South Asia) will travel to Japan and India and Nepal, respectively, along with SSGA board directors.

These are important and growing markets for SSGA’s processing and exporting members. In the Philippines, which is the eighth-largest market for U.S. agricultural products, averaging $3.1 billion, there is both a need for imported food and food ingredients to keep up with the pace of growth and stave off shortages, as well as a growing middle class that is buying higher-quality foods. The latter category is willing to spend more and has an affinity for products from the United States or products that contain U.S. ingredients.

Prather and Frederick took part in tours of a membership shopping center (think Costco or Sam’s Club) and a grocery store in Manila where U.S. foods were prominently featured. The Robinson’s Supermarket chain, for instance, was highlighting U.S. brands as part of a monthlong “American Festival.”

SSGA goes globetrotting

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The second half of 2022 will be one of outreach for the Specialty Soya and Grains Alliance. Travel is underway, as SSGA spreads the message of high quality to our customers abroad. This week already, SSGA Chair Rob Prather is on the road, traveling to Vietnam along with Hoa Huynh, technical adviser for Southeast Asia.

Following their visit with Vinasoy, a Vietnamese soymilk and soy drink producer, Huynh believes the prospect of Vinasoy importing U.S. Identity Preserved soybeans to be high. Vinasoy staff recently returned from the Food Grade Soybean Procurement Course at Northern Crops Institute in Fargo, N.D. Prather and Huynh also met with Dabaco, a feed and food production company and have more visits planned.

Next week, Prather will meet up with Manager of Strategic Programs Shane Frederick in the Philippines for a USDA trade mission to Manila that features several state departments of ag, state and national commodity associations and agribusinesses for tours and business-to-business meetings.

In both countries, SSGA is talking about the U.S. Identity Preserved assurance plan and brand mark and preparing for an international launch later this year in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

“After spending much of the last two years talking to customers virtually about identity preserved soybeans and specialty grains, we are thrilled to be able to start having those conversations in person,” Frederick said. “This USDA trade mission to Manila and other trips are perfect opportunities to highlight the new U.S. Identity Preserved mark and explain what it represents – the great care, commitment and close attention that IP farmers, processors and shippers undertake to fulfill the needs of their customers.”

In the coming months, SSGA technical advisers Alyson Segawa (North Asia) and Philip Shull (South Asia) will be traveling to Japan and India and Nepal, respectively, along with board directors, and our alliance is looking ahead to more opportunities in the future. In India and Nepal, SSGA representatives will participate in three seminars organized by the U.S. Soybean Export Council that will extol the quality and value of U.S. identity preserved soybeans. In addition to meeting with the trade, SSGA will meet with India’s Soy Food Processors Welfare Association (SFPWA) and Foreign Agricultural Service-New Delhi to discuss SFPWA’s efforts to secure a tariff rate quota for food grade soybeans from the Indian government.

Look for reports on each of these trips in future SSGA newsletters.

SSGA addresses buyers in Indonesia

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With food availability a concern in Indonesia, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service Agriculture Counselor Rey Santella emphasized the need for the United States and Indonesia to keep trade open to help feed each other in his address at the Asia Soy Excellence & Protein Summit.

SSGA had the opportunity to weigh in on that concern during the conference, hosted by the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC) June 21-22 in Bali. Presenting virtually, SSGA Executive Director Eric Wenberg and Chair Rob Prather briefed about 150 attendees on current identity preserved (IP) crop production issues, logistics and container shipping during the hybrid event. Steve Peach, a Michigan farmer and member of the Michigan Soybean Committee, and Troy Berndt, a grower relations specialist in Wisconsin, updated attendees on the 2022 growing season in their respective states/regions.

Attendees were interested to learn about container shipping challenges. While most of these challenges likely will continue into the next shipping season, they are expected to progressively improve. Prather encouraged buyers to order from U.S. exporters as soon as possible, not only to help plan logistics but to allow U.S. farmers ample time to grow IP crops with the exact qualities and characteristics requested by the end users. Ordering IP crops in advance also improves efficiencies in production plans for manufacturers focusing on quality.

Wenberg and Prather also emphasized the importance of partnerships between groups like SSGA and USSEC and how buyers should seek out educational materials, such as SSGA University and the U.S. Soy Excellence Center. Wenberg also spoke of SSGA’s international launch of the U.S. Identity Preserved brand mark, which is scheduled to take place in Southeast Asia in November.

 

Member Profile: Bryan Stobaugh, Missouri Soybeans

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Bryan Stobaugh kicked off his collegiate career majoring in biology and chemistry at Arkansas Tech. But fate led him to a graduate assistantship in soybean breeding at the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville.

“In essence, I was pre-med, but I ended up falling in love with genetics,” Stobaugh said. “I applied to every genetic course that offered graduate school in all the surrounding states.”

Today, Stobaugh is the Director of Licensing and Commercialization at the Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council.

Missouri Soybeans first heard about the Specialty Soya and Grains Alliance (SSGA) through their contacts at Minnesota Soybean. After a conversation with Minnesota Soybean CEO Tom Slunecka, Stobaugh and his colleagues took the leap and Missouri Soybeans became a member of SSGA.

“Gary Wheeler, our CEO and Executive Director, is always interested in and looking at what the added benefit is and what could be done differently,” said Stobaugh. “SSGA was an opportunity for us to expand our portfolio.”

Two years ago, Stobaugh applied for an SSGA board position. Though he wasn’t elected to the board, he was asked to chair the agronomy action team because of his strong background in agronomy.

“We worked on deciding what the plan could be for an organization that had never had an agronomy action team before,” Stobaugh said.

A year later, he resubmitted his application and earned a spot on the board.

“It’s been a learning experience because there are avenues that we don’t touch in our normal realm that SSGA can,” said Stobaugh. “SSGA represents that opportunity for the farmer to continue in their conventional space but add an extra premium to their bottom line by doing something different than their normal day.”

SSGA performs multiple roles, but in Stobaugh’s eyes one of the most important roles is helping farmers make sense of the complicated world of specialty soy by providing resources that they wouldn’t normally have access to, making the process a little less daunting, especially for prospective growers.

“SSGA has a network for people to learn how to grow the crops and use the chemistries,” said Stobaugh. “And then all the way through to harvest to know how to have it cleaned and packaged and who they’re going to aggregate the crop to at a specific delivery point. It’s just a big learning process.”

Looking ahead, Stobaugh is excited for the potential of large seed trials. Though he recognizes that large trials have logistical issues and take years to plan, he knows how important they are to farmers and wants to use them as a chance to show seeds’ diversity.

“Large trials don’t mean varieties are competing with each other,” he said. “They’re saying look at the variety we have in specialty soy.”

Member Profile: Colby Eymann, Scoular

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Specialty Soya and Grains Alliance (SSGA) Treasurer Colby Eymann grew up in Kansas City, but agriculture and farming runs deep in his family for generations.

Eymann returned to agriculture after finding a passion through his college classes and listening to a guest speaker at the University of Kansas. His interest in agriculture led Eymann to his job at Scoular, where he currently works as the product group manager on its Select Global Grains & Oilseeds team.

“I’m within my first six months on the board of SSGA,” Eymann said. “I really got involved when Scoular decided to join SSGA. We have a growing identity preserved and other grains program here, so we sought out SSGA as an important industry advocacy group. We wanted to be a part of it, and I was granted a board seat.”

In his first hour of being on the board, Eymann was elected treasurer. He was happy to jump right into the position as an active board member. Working at Scoular gives Eymann some insights to bring to his fellow board members.

“I’ve enjoyed what the agriculture industry has brought up, it’s always changing, always keeps you on your toes, beyond fascinating industry,” Eymann said. “And what I like about it, is it’s really built on people and relationships.”

Scoular has a history of more than 125 years and is involved in numerous different areas of agriculture, such as the food and freight sectors. It works with elevators and a wide range of products, including identity preserved soybeans.

One attribute that drove Scoular to join SSGA was its U.S. Identity Preserved brand and program, which was unveiled in December 2021. Scoular is currently working on its application to bear the trademark that SSGA has worked to create.

Eymann said Scoular likes the direction and initiatives SSGA is putting out and wants to help drive the value of identity preserved products and agriculture products from the U.S. He believes the staff and board members of SSGA move the needle for the organization and industry to grow it even further.

“I think there’s a lot of opportunity with SSGA,” Eymann said. “What’s really great about SSGA is it can really kind of augment and help cover what other organizations do on a more commodity front.”

Abbe steps down as SSGA adviser

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Bruce Abbe, the longtime leader of the Specialty Soya and Grains Alliance’s (SSGA) predecessor organization, has stepped down as SSGA’s strategic adviser for trade and transportation.

Bruce AbbeSSGA is grateful for Abbe’s service as it has grown into a national business organization.

Abbe has been in his advising role since SSGA was formed in 2019 as a merger between Midwest Shippers and the Northern Food Grade Soybean Association. Abbe was the president and CEO of Midwest Shippers for more than a decade prior to the merger.

“Bruce showed me the path ahead when I became director of SSGA three years ago,” said Eric Wenberg, SSGA executive director. “He has been a constant adviser and friend as we took on more and bigger tasks. What I understand about intermodal shipping comes from him.”

Abbe has more than 35 years of professional experience in public affairs, communications, trade promotion and organizational management for agricultural business organizations. In 2020, he received the William K. Smith Distinguished Service Award for outstanding leadership and contributions to private sector freight transportation from the University of Minnesota Center for Transportation Studies. Later that year, SSGA awarded him with its first SSGA Alliance Honor for Advancing Transportation.

SSGA will continue to lean on Abbe’s expertise in training, presentations, events and projects as it looks to update the advisory position. SSGA has truly grown into an organization that tackles shipping and transportation issues at a national level. As SSGA conducts a search, Katelyn Engquist will be the staff lead for SSGA’s Competitive Shipping Action Team on behalf of chair Darwin Rader. The action team follows and listens to major concerns of SSGA members seeking container supply chain solute ions and solutions to other present-day problems, as well as educates customers about container shipping in order to build a brighter future for intermodal exports of high-quality grains and oilseeds.

Please wish Bruce well and express your thanks, as we do to him at bruce@abbecommunications.com. For more information on SSGA’s Competitive Shipping Action Team, reach out to Katelyn at kengquist@soyagrainsalliance.org or Darwin at darwinr@zfsinc.com.

SSGA elects board members; Prather chosen as chair

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Rob Prather

Rob Prather

The Specialty Soya and Grains Alliance added one new member to its Board of Directors, re-elected two others and tabbed Rob Prather of Global Processing as its new board chair during its 2021 Annual Meeting on Friday.

Prather and past chairman Robert Sinner of SB&B Foods were re-elected to the board, and Bryan Stobaugh of the Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council was elected to a third open seat.

Following the business meeting, the Board of Directors elected officers, and Prather was voted in as chair, moving up from his position of vice-chair.

“I’m humbled,” said Prather, chief strategic ambassador for Iowa-based Global Processing. “There’s definitely some big shoes to fill. I’m excited to be staying in the leadership. With the COVID-stunted progress that we’ve had, some things just didn’t quite get done. I’m excited that the U.S. Identity Preserved brand did get done – that was awesome – but I think there’s a lot more to do. Consistency and familiarity are what the people we deal with need, and I’m glad to be able to help provide that.”

Adam Buckentine of The Redwood Group was elected vice-chair and Colby Eymann of Scoular was elected secretary/treasurer.

“I’m really looking forward to continuing the work that’s already been happening at SSGA,” Buckentine said. “There’s a ton of great projects that are going on, and I’m going to do my best to use some of the knowledge that I’ve gained over the years in this industry to contribute.”

Earlier this year, Eymann was appointed to the board of directors following the resignation of Raquel Hansen. Eymann will complete the remaining two years of that seat’s term.

“I’m really excited and honored to join the board of directors here at SSGA,” Eymann said. “I think what’s really got me excited is the role of the U.S Identity Preserved brand and, together with Rob, as the chairman, and the rest of the board, pushing that out for U.S. soy and specialty grains.”

Stobaugh, who has served as chair of SSGA’s agronomy action team, was elected to the seat held by retiring board director Rick Brandenburger of Richland IFC. Other members of the SSGA Board of Directors include Darwin Rader of Zeeland Farm Services, Keith Schrader of Wheeling Grain Partnership and Andy Bensend of AB Farms.

“This is a group of such smart, talented people,” SSGA Executive Director Eric Wenberg said. “They not only represent all of the areas vital to SSGA and its members, but they have a passion for what they do. And that will only serve our membership and help our alliance grow and grow stronger going forward.”

SSGA’s annual meeting took place Friday at the Hyatt Regency in Bloomington, following the U.S. Identity Preserved launch event on Thursday in Minneapolis.

Besides board elections and the annual member business meeting, Friday’s agenda included several speakers and presenters, including: keynote speaker Sara Baer-Sinnott, president of Oldways/Whole Grains Council; ally spotlight speaker Ed Beaman, COO of U.S. Soybean Export Council; Molly Burns, branded program manager for Food Export-Midwest; Minnesota farmer and SSGA board member Keith Schrader; agronomists Dr. Tom Peters of North Dakota State University/University of Minnesota and Dr. Kate Warpeha of University of Illinois Chicago.

SSGA also announced its annual Alliance Honors, recognizing those who have made significant and sustaining contributions to the U.S. IP industry in 2021.

SSGA Board of Directors meets – in person

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For the first time since early 2020 – before COVID-19 restricted travel and gathering – the Specialty Soya and Grains Alliance (SSGA) Board of Directors held an in-person meeting. The eight-member board, along with SSGA staff, technical advisers and special guests met at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Bloomington, Minn., on Tuesday, June 22.  

The SSGA Board of Directors met on Tuesday, June 22, in Bloomington, Minn., It was the first time the group held an in-person board meeting since February of 2020. Pictured are: (first row, left to right) Raquel Hansen, Keith Schrader, Andy Bensend, Rick Brandenburger; (second row) Executive Director Eric Wenberg, Adam Buckentine, Vice-Chair Rob Prather, Chair Bob Sinner, Secretary/Treasurer Darwin Rader.

“Meeting in person was a wonderful opportunity to reconnect,” SSGA Executive Director Eric Wenberg said. “We’re still praying for global safety and recovery, and it will be a wonderful thing when commerce is operating fully again and we’re all working in person.” 

While a few guests took in the meeting virtually, all board business and reports from staff, action teams and technical advisers took place live and in person. 

“Our technical advisers were a highlight,” Wenberg said, noting the group of Hoa Huynh (Southeast Asia), Alyson Segawa (North Asia), Eugene Philhower (Europe) and Phil Shull (India). “They showed the impact that we’re having globally.” 

Reports showed SSGA making progress in projects such as the U.S. Identity Preserved assurance protocol and IP website, SSGA University and inspection certification relief. 

SSGA Strategic Adviser for Trade and Transportation Bruce Abbe with SSGA Board of Directors Adam Buckentine, Bob Sinner and Darwin Rader.

“We also solidified our future by overhauling our bylaws,” Wenberg said. “That was an important stewardship moment, as we operate in trust of our members and want to have clarity and transparency at all levels.”

Prior to the official meeting, the board underwent media training put on by communicators from Ag Management Solutions. 

“We started the day with media training because SSGA, in 2021 and 2022, has a mountain to climb to make sure our concerns regarding container shipping and the Identity Preserved industry are heard in a public forum by leaders, growers, buyers and shippers,” Wenberg said.

SSGA staff visits Illinois members

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Staff from the Specialty Soya and Grains Alliance (SSGA) hit the road in early May, traveling to Illinois to visit various members and supporters in the Land of Lincoln.

SSGA Executive Director Eric Wenberg and Market Development Project Manager Lee Steinhauer visit with staff from Hang Tung Resources during their recent trip to see members in Illinois.

“As business travel makes a comeback, many of us were a little surprised by how much meeting in person meant,” SSGA Executive Director Eric Wenberg said. “Lee and I were grateful to join our friends and learn about what’s needed to keep the premium grains business moving forward.”

Wenberg was joined by Lee Steinhauer, SSGA market development project manager, in their visits to representatives of Hang Tung Resources, US Nisshin Shokai, Clarkson Grain Company, Global Processing and others.

“It was a really good trip,” Steinhauer said. “We were able to talk to them about where they need help and where they appreciate us. We were happy to get out and see people face-to-face again, and they were happy to see people, too.”

Hang Tung Resources, an investment group that has grown into a multi-segment group covering grain, oilseed and textile commodity trading, as well as agricultural processing and other services, connects SSGA to operations overseas as a U.S.-based multinational.

Nisshin Shokai, a trading company that specializes in the niche demand for specialty soy ingredients, features world class logistics and a solid book for customers. Despite all its obstacles, the company is making trade happen for their customers. “It takes special, caring people to keep trade moving,” Wenberg said during in the visit.

Clarkson is a grain, oilseed and ingredient supplier specializing in IP, non-GMO and organic crops. Company founder Lynn Clarkson is credited in 1974 with beginning the movement of segregated direct farmer supply that grew into the Identity Preserved marketplace.

Global Processing is a supplier of non-GMO food-grade soybeans. SSGA Vice-Chair Rob Prather is the chief strategic ambassador for Global Processing. He puts in volunteer hours each week for SSGA to make the world grain business a better environment for the producer and processor. Customers both domestic and international keep asking for quality, he said.

“If they ask for clean soybeans in a 30 kg bag, they expect every bag to be 30 kg, no more, no less,” he said. “We pack them practically as well as Mars loads M&Ms, and our buyers love it. IP quality means I care.”

Spring has sprung!

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SSGA Executive Director Eric Wenberg returns to the IP-ODCAST to discuss spring planting intentions and trying to better understand the logistical difficulties growers might be facing in the upcoming growing season. “SSGA is actively interested in what’s happening this year with the crop,” Wenberg tells host Shane Frederick. Non-GMO soybean and corn acreage was up in 2020, and the hope is farmers stick with it in 2021.