The new chairman of the U.S. Grains and BioProducts Council says protecting key export markets and expanding demand for U.S. corn and ethanol will be among his top priorities. Nebraska farmer Jay Reiners says Mexico, Southeast Asia and Canada all present opportunities for growth, while sorghum and barley exports continue to face challenges.
“We got the USMCA renewal that’s going through right now, and we have to protect and grow our largest market, which is Mexico, especially corn, and it’s over a billion bushel corn crop that goes down to Mexico, and we need to protect that at all costs. They’re just on the cusp of starting to import ethanol, and I’m hoping within six months we get an E10 mandate from down there, so that will definitely help out our ethanol producers, you know, not only in Nebraska, but throughout the nation.”
Reiners says the opportunities extend well beyond North America, particularly in rapidly developing countries across Asia.
“It’s especially Southeast Asia, you know, it’s the biggest growing demographic of money flow into the world economies and they’re middle class populations exploding and first thing they always seek out is, you know, a higher quality nutrition and so I think the US is very well positioned to help supply that, not only in raw commodities, but ethanol for clean fuel initiatives over there and you’re seeing that in the Philippines and Vietnam and I’m hoping Indonesia, Japan is coming, to the forefront, they’re going to be a large ethanol importer. So, yeah, things are looking up on, you know, as far as bulk raw commodities that we as American farmers produce, the export market – it’s records this year, and it looks like it’s not going to slow down.”
He also points to additional ethanol demand closer to home, while noting some commodities still face trade headwinds.
“I think they’re at a 5.8 blending rate outside of the three largest cities. Well, if you would just include the three largest cities in there, that’d be a huge boost. And when they go to E10, man, that’s a huge market. And then you’d look to our neighbor to the north, we absolutely have to defend that ethanol market up there. Canada is going to take almost a billion gallons of ethanol. I mean, that’s a huge deal. And, you know, they go to E15 mandate, which they’re planning to do in a year or two. And man, that just opens the door for everybody. The only thing that’s lagging is milo and barley, and that is geopolitical reasons. So, if we can get an India trade deal signed and across, that should help the sorghum guys, you know, and China’s always a wild card on that sorghum deal. So, they buy when they want to buy.”
As he begins his term as chairman, Reiners says his focus will be protecting existing markets while helping open new ones.
“Well, I think my priorities are definitely USMCA. That’s at the forefront of everyone in the U.S. because Mexico and Canada are number one and number two as far as our ag trade. But then again, you know, help with the sorghum and barley. There are certain things that we cannot do. We cannot lobby the U.S. government, but we can go overseas and promote and talk to their government officials about the benefits of the U.S. sorghum and barley crop. I’m really hopeful that we get this going back on track again because especially the barley guys are really suffering. So, I think that needs to be a priority.”
The delegates of the U.S. Grains & BioProducts Council elected Jay Reiners of the Nebraska Corn Board as chairman of its USGBC Board of Directors at its 66th Annual Board of Delegates Meeting held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He will lead efforts to expand international markets for U.S. grains and related products.