NEWS RELEASE

Download word document

Immediate Release:
Thursday, June 25, 2009

Nebraska Corn Board contacts:

NE Corn Board: 800.632.6761

Corn, beef producers promoting Nebraska beef in Japan, South Korea

LINCOLN, NE — Representatives from the Nebraska Corn Board and Nebraska Beef Council, and their counterparts from Iowa, are in Japan and South Korea this week for a joint trade mission to support corn-fed beef in the region.

The mission was organized by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), which the Nebraska Corn Board supports as a way to promote high-quality U.S. and Nebraska beef abroad, which in turn boosts the value of cattle by more than $130 per head.

“It is important for corn growers to support beef producers as they develop and expand markets. We’re on this mission to do that and to put a face on agriculture for important customers in Japan and South Korea,” said Mark Jagels, a member of the Nebraska Corn Board and a farmer from Davenport.

Jagels is joined on the mission by Nebraskans Alan Tiemann, a Nebraska Corn Board member and farmer from Seward, and David Hamilton, a Nebraska Beef Council member and farmer from Thedford. Three farmers from Iowa are also on the trade mission.

The group began its activities June 23 with a briefing at the U.S. embassy in Tokyo and meetings with Japanese meat buyers, manufacturers and retailers. Team members met with more beef industry representatives June 24, including importers, distributors and cold storage operators. USMEF also held a press conference and beef cutting demonstration that allowed the group to discuss current issues with Japanese broadcasters and trade reporters and to share their personal histories as family farmers and ranchers.

“As corn producers, we realize that the livestock industry is our number one customer and that we need to be supportive of beef exports,” Tiemann said. “That’s something we have really set our minds to in Nebraska – understanding our largest customers’ needs and working together to move our industries forward.”

Currently, beef shipped to Japan must come from cattle aged 20 months or younger. Jagels said if that age limit could be raised to follow the 30-month rule that is more standardized, it would help U.S. beef producers reach its full market potential in the country.

“When we visited with the importers, grocers and meat buyers here in Japan, they were all in support of a higher age limit,” Tiemann said. “They could definitely utilize more U.S. beef if we are able to get that, so we’re hopeful that our governments will move this issue forward soon and then we’ll really be able to open up this export market.”

Jagels said Japan and South Korea are very important trading partners for the United States.

“We also need to remember that 95% of the world’s population resides outside the United States. We need to be visible in these markets to sustain and grow U.S. and Nebraska beef demand,” he said. “Every ton of beef we export represents about 1.5 acres of corn and the equivalent corn co-product like distillers grains, which comes from ethanol facilities. Exports are vital.”


The Nebraska Corn Board is a self-help program, funded and managed by Nebraska corn farmers. Producers invest in the program at a rate of 1/4 of a cent per bushel of corn sold. Nebraska corn checkoff funds are invested in programs of market development, research and education.

-30-