U.S. soy exports hit new milestones

ST. LOUIS – U.S. soybean farmers continue to provide their international customers with reliable, quality products, and those customers have once again rewarded them with big purchases. In the 2013/2014 marketing year, the United States exported over 2 billion bushels of U.S. soy, valued at more than $30 billion.

The year got off to a fast start, exceeding the predicted export numbers in early 2014 and finishing strong with record-size crops starting to come out of the fields. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the 2013/2014 export total includes more than 1.6 billion bushels of whole U.S. soybeans, meal from 484 million bushels of U.S. soybeans and oil from 161 million bushels. This total represents 62 percent of U.S. soybean production from last year.

“U.S. soybean farmers are committed to meeting global demand with a quality product,” says Dwain Ford, United Soybean Board International Opportunities Target Area Coordinator and soybean farmer from Kinmundy, Illinois. “These export numbers prove that U.S. soy is a highly valued product in the global marketplace and that U.S. soybean farmers are doing our job.”

Top buyers of whole U.S. soybeans in 2013/2014 include:

• China: 1.013 billion bushels

• Mexico: 124 million bushels

• Indonesia: 75 million bushels

Top buyers of U.S. soybean meal in 2014 include:

• Mexico: meal from 68 million bushels of U.S. soybeans

• Philippines: meal from 59 million bushels

• Canada: meal from 45 million bushels

Top buyers of U.S. soybean oil in 2014 include:

• Mexico: oil from 36 million bushels of U.S. soybeans

• China: oil from 35 million bushels

• Dominican Republic: oil from 22 million bushels

The 70 farmer-directors of USB oversee the investments of the soy checkoff to maximize profit opportunities for all U.S. soybean farmers. These volunteers invest and leverage checkoff funds to increase the value of U.S. soy meal and oil, to ensure U.S. soybean farmers and their customers have the freedom and infrastructure to operate, and to meet the needs of U.S. soy’s customers. As stipulated in the federal Soybean Promotion, Research and Consumer Information Act, the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service has oversight responsibilities for USB and the soy checkoff.

For more information on the United Soybean Board, visit www.unitedsoybean.org