America's ability to develop and sell its food to international customers needs a little nurturing . . . or, in this case, a bridge. That bridge is the Foreign Agricultural Service or FAS.
The FAS staff carries out this mission through a global network of 96 offices that cover 167 countries around the globe. The dedicated people are the eyes, ears and voice for U.S. agriculture and represent the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) internationally focused division. Without them, farmers, food producers and manufacturers would have a more difficult time finding contacts and developing relationships with potential customers in each country.
Like all successful organizations, people and the teams they belong to need to set aside some time for training.
In late July, the FAS Junior Professional Advisory Council - a group of about 20 young FAS employees - stopped by the Hoard's Dairyman Farm to gain a better understanding of dairy farming and the resulting nutritious dairy products that come from cow's milk. We were one stop in a multitude as the group traveled throughout the Midwest for a week, learning more about agriculture and food production. The ultimate goal - have FAS junior professionals gain a better understanding of U.S. agriculture before they are deployed throughout.
As tour group leader for the two-hour Hoard's Dairyman Farm stop, I was impressed by the thoughtful questions asked by the FAS staff. The bilingual group delved into cow and calf care, milking systems, crops, dairy product quality and genetics. Yes, genetics.
With the U.S. selling roughly 50 percent, or one in two units produced by American A.I. companies, genetics is a major ag product. That, coupled with the growth in dairy product sales, makes dairy a dynamic component to the U.S. food sales equation.
Think about it. Roughly 20 years ago, U.S. dairy product exports were minimal. Today, one day each week, every U.S. cow has her milk purchased by a customer in a international country. And its through relationships developed by FAS that many of our potential customers first meet U.S. ag suppliers.
To give one specific example.
In my recent trip to Vietnam, I learned it was the Foreign Ag Service's Jeanne Baily (now Mark Dries handles the role) who helped open doors with Vinamilk. That relationship sprouted from a seed to seedling to a full-grown relationship where Vinamilk went on to purchase over $100 million in U.S. milk powders last year.
As for the photo with this blog, yours truly is showing Lindsay Carter, who is a FAS staffer, how the Hoard's Dairyman Farm teat scrubber improves milk quality (Phil Hayes is shown in the background). This was one example of the many hands-on discussions during their visit to the Hoard's Dairyman Farm.
