During the second day of ANFNC’s event, industry delegates visited Smithfield’s Romania Feed Mill in Vinga, Arad County in small groups. Photo Courtesy of USSEC

U.S. Soy growers traveled to Romania this month to increase awareness of U.S. soy and promote sustainable U.S. soy among members of the Romanian Feed Manufacturer Association.

The U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC)  attended the National Conference of the Romanian Feed Manufacturers Association, hosted by Smithfield, on March 16 -17 in Timisoara City, Romania. More than 80 industry delegates and 10 foreign speakers from European and U.S. organizations participated in this event. The USSEC delegation included American Soybean Association (ASA) Vice President Bret Davis, United Soybean Board (USB) Director David Iverson and USSEC Regional Director – European Union (EU) / Middle East – North Africa (MENA) Brent Babb.

After a brief introduction of USSEC provided Babb, Davis spoke on “U.S. Soybeans’ Sustainability and Biotechnology” and Iverson discussed “U.S. Soy Outlook for 2017.” Both presentations were well-received by the audience and fit the conference agenda entitled “Security, Safety, and Sustainability for Increasing Competitiveness of the Feed Industry.”

In addition to the sustainability presentations made by the keynote speakers from USSEC, DSM, and Smithfield Romania, the audience saw presentations approaching new sustainable feed products including extruded linseed or feed additives such as soy chelates. The event also provided the delegates with insight on the latest trends in raw materials, feed additives, and feed manufacturing, besides creating ample opportunities for feed companies and suppliers to interact and network.

“The solid presence and support of USSEC confirms our belief that the local feed and livestock industries will expand in the near future,” said USSEC Animal Utilization Consultant – Romania Dr. Iani Chihaia, acting as a facilitator for this event. “We hope that the Feed Association will continue to serve as a platform for the industry players that allows our members to grow and implement the latest standards in safe and sustainable production.”

During the second day of ANFNC’s event, industry delegates visited Smithfield’s Romania Feed Mill in Vinga, Arad County in small groups

During the second day of the event, participants were invited to tour Smithfield’s Ferme Feed Mill, located in Vinga, Arad County. More than 60 people had the chance to take a tour to the largest and uniquely American-designed and -engineered feed mill in the country. The plant is an example of a feed manufacturer being able to produce different feeds under the latest safe and sustainable feed industry standards.

According to an ANFNC press release about the event, the conference in Timisoara was by far the best meeting of the feed association since its inception. Romanian representatives who attended and listened to the presentations were truly impressed with Smithfield’s overall organization, the quality of speakers and presentations and the networking opportunities.

As for the foreign speakers and sponsors of the conference, the event allowed them to get a better understanding of the Romanian feed and livestock actual reality and potential for progress and expansion. It clearly showed the opportunities and potential that exists in this particular market for growth in livestock production and, consequently, the use of sustainable feed additives and manufacturing technologies, with U.S. soy being one of the key products in this regard.

Even though Romania is not one of the largest soy markets in Europe, its livestock and feed industries are growing and set a good example for other Eastern European countries to develop their industries.

Having USSEC delegates participating and giving speeches at the conference and offering support over the past several years for the development of ANFNC, as a strong professional organization and professional forum, is probably one of the most important success stories on how U.S. soy farmers are committed to building relationships with European industry professionals and end users. USSEC will continue its promotional efforts to accompany the growth of this market and to position U.S. products in this market.