 |
| Members
of the Taiwan Agricultural Trade Goodwill Mission visited
the National
Corn Growers Association’s St.
Louis office
today as part of a tour around the Corn
Belt to
celebrate the signing of an intent-to-trade agreement between Taiwan and
the United
States.
The delegation attend the signing of the agreement in Washington,
D.C., last week and stopped in Ohio, Indiana, Iowa and Missouri
this week to visit farmers and agricultural associations. |
United
States, Taiwan Reach Trade Agreement for Corn and Soybeans (9-22-05)
The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is encouraged by an
intent-to-trade agreement signed Sept. 14 by the United States and
Taiwan. The agreement calls for Taiwan to purchase between 7.5 and
10 million metric tonnes of grain by the end of 2007.
Taiwan, the United
States’ third largest corn
export customer, has agreed to purchase the equivalent of 295 to
394 million bushels of corn over the next two years. For the marketing
year ending Aug. 31, 2005, Taiwan bought more than 176 million
bushels of corn.
“We value Taiwan as an important trade partner, and they have
always been a reliable customer,” said NCGA President Leon
Corzine. “We’re happy to host the Goodwill Mission, and
we’ll work to strengthen the relationship with Taiwan as we
continue to grow a high quality product.”
The Taiwan Agricultural
Trade Goodwill Mission has been traveling throughout the Corn Belt
to celebrate the accord. The delegation signed the agreement in
Washington, D.C., last week then visited Ohio, Indiana, Iowa and
Missouri for ceremonies. The group stopped by NCGA’s St.
Louis offices today for an overview of what the organization does
for its grower members.
“Taiwan has been a great trade partner for several years,
and they’ve been very loyal,” said NCGA CEO Rick Tolman. “Corn
growers are thrilled that the Taiwanese wish to continue this relationship.
These missions are a good opportunity for them to reestablish relationships
with the United States and for us to thank them for their business
and understand any problems they are encountering.
“We’ve been a consistent supplier, and they’ve
been a consistent customer. It’s been a great relationship.”