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Soy Excellence Centers increasing markets for US soybeans
An Illinois farmer has experienced first-hand how Soy Excellence Centers are diversifying demand and increasing markets for US soybean exports.
Mark Read of Putnam, IL recently traveled to Honduras, where the Illinois Soybean Association has partnered with Zamorano University to invest in an in-pond raceway system for sustainable production of tilapia.
“They use 100% United States Soybeans, which they feed to their tilapia. Then, they ship almost all the tilapia back to the US.”
Read says labor is much cheaper in Honduras, so it is more economical to produce tilapia there and ship it to the US- but this project ensures use of US soybeans in the process.
“At the supermarket, a lot of times you will see tilapia raised in Honduras. So, when you buy their product, you are supporting Illinois soybeans and US soybeans.”
Read says there are similar Soy Excellence Center projects in Cairo, Thailand, Singapore, and Nigeria where the US Soybean Export Council provides education and training highlighting soybeans in sectors like poultry, feed milling, agronomy, aquaculture, and processing and refining.
