I am one of 77 U.S. soybean farmer directors who volunteers time to lead the United Soybean Board. USB manages the national soy checkoff, which invests soybean farmer funds into research, promotion, and education to maximize profitability for all U.S. soybean farmers. There are about one-half million of us soybean farmers in the United States.
All three of us volunteered our time to come to Rome because meeting with representatives like yourselves is so important that we are willing to step away from our farms even as we are gearing up for harvest. The September 11 USDA World Ag Supply and Demand report estimates that U.S. soybean growers will harvest 4.5 billion bushels of soybeans this fall. The U.S. national soybean yield is projected at 52.8 bushels per acre.
The linkages between our farms, trade and global food security are demonstrated by the U.S. soy flour that goes into these bags of Incaparina. Our guest from Guatemala likely knows about Incaparina. It was developed in the 1960s for children and other population groups with nutritional deficiencies. The original formula’s ingredients and micro-nutrient composition needed to be improved—and it needed to be cost effective.
A private-sector company partnered to license and commercialize this product. WISHH has worked alongside this company. WISHH has provided technical assistance to their food engineers, marketing staff and others so they could use U.S. soy flour for protein, amino acids and more. You will see Incaparina is also fortified with vitamins. Today, this company’s market research shows Incaparina holds a 96 percent recognition rate in Guatemala and is eaten across Central America as well as in the United States. You can find it everywhere from large urban supermarkets to small rural shops. The World Food Programme and other organizations also distribute it in their food security programs.
Just a few weeks ago, this same manufacturer launched INCAPARINA EXPRESS, an instant food product that also incorporates U.S. soy flour as a source of high-quality protein. INCAPARINA EXPRESS is the latest result of a longstanding relationship between U.S. soybean farmers and WISHH’s work in Latin America.
A second objective of today’s roundtable is to discuss how our organizations are helping prepare the next generation of agricultural leaders. One example is USB’s See for Yourself program that shows young U.S. farmers how our checkoff investments are
building new markets that are important to their future. Last year, USB took 10 of these soybean growers to Guatemala where they got to meet the manufacturer of Incaparina as well as see the work of the U.S. Soybean Export Council in animal feed markets.
In 2022, I traveled with my state soybean association to see WISHH’s work growing Cambodian aquaculture and trade. Again, WISHH leveraged USDA funding with our farmer investments in the soybean checkoff. WISHH introduced a variety of innovations, including floating fish feed as well as in-pond raceway systems that let the farmers better manage their fish. WISHH worked closely with the private sector as well as the Royal University of Cambodia to host internship programs for young aquaculturists.