Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
September 18, 2007
Representatives from Japan, a
premium market for Canadian food grade soybeans and Vietnam, an
important emerging market are attending back-to-back programs
showcasing Canada’s food grade soybean industry.
The 2nd CSC Japan-Canada Soybean Program and the CSC
Vietnam-Canada Soybean Program are being held September 17 to 23
and September 24 to 28, respectively. Both programs are
sponsored by the Canadian Soybean Council (CSC) and coordinated
by the Canadian International Grains Institute (CIGI).
“Japan has been Canada’s largest export market for food grade
soybeans for the last 20 years, averaging over 300,000 tonnes
annually,” says Jim Gowland, CSC Chairman. “Vietnam is a market
that holds tremendous future opportunities for Canadian soy
exporters. Many Vietnamese companies are looking to export more
processed soy-based products into other Asian markets which
means there is a need for high quality soybeans.”
The programs come on the heels of a two-week Canadian soybean
mission to Japan and Vietnam in March of this year, which
included visits to prospective and existing customers in both
countries. “Each of these programs is designed to complement the
work that was done on that mission and during previous CSC
soybean programs and provides an important opportunity for the
participants to see the Canadian industry first-hand,”
says Dr. Linda Malcolmson, CIGI Director of Special Crops,
Oilseeds and Pulses and an advisor on the CSC.
While in Canada, the six participants on the CSC Japan-Canada
Soybean Program will take part in lectures, demonstrations and
tours focusing on the production, handling, processing,
marketing, breeding and research activities for Canadian food
grade soybeans. The program is being held in Manitoba, Quebec
and Ontario, Canada’s three main soybean growing regions.
The following week’s CSC Vietnam-Canada Soybean Program will be
held entirely in Ontario and will also include a series of
industry visits, presentations and opportunities for the four
participants to interact directly with representatives from the
Canadian soybean industry.
“Both of these programs are important relationship-building
opportunities with existing and potential customers, in addition
to providing Canadian industry members with insight into the
needs and requirements of these markets,” says Gowland.
Established in 2005, the CSC is an alliance of Canada’s major
soybean growers representing the
Ontario Soybean Growers
(OSG), the Manitoba Pulse Growers Association (MPGA) and the
Fédération des Producteurs de Cultures Commerciales du Quebec
(FPCCQ). Its mandate is to identify and develop new markets for
Canadian soybeans through cooperative market development and
research projects.
CIGI is a non-profit market development organization dedicated
to promoting Canada's field crops and their products in domestic
and international markets through educational programming and
technical activities. Core funding for CIGI is provided by
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the Canadian Wheat Board.
Additional funds and support are provided by other sectors of
the agriculture industry. Since 1972, CIGI has hosted more than
25,000 participants from 110 countries. |
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