Thursday, February 14, 2008
Lt. Governor Judge To Promote Iowa Exports In Japan
Trip Scheduled to Tout Reliability and Supply of Iowa Agricultural Products
(Des Moines) - On Saturday, February 16, Lt. Governor Patty Judge and a delegation of Iowa industry leaders will leave for Tokyo, Japan, to promote the reliability and supply of Iowa's exports. During the five-day business development trip, Lt. Governor Judge will attend several business meetings with Japanese business leaders in the meat, grain and soybean industries and give the welcome address to 150 Japanese buyers and government officials at the annual Japan / Iowa Food Grade Soybean and Grain Seminar.
"As our top market for agricultural exports, we need to maintain Iowa's reputation as a serious and reliable supplier in Japan," said Lt. Governor Judge. "This trip will allow our state to solidify Iowa's image in Japan and grow new business opportunities for Iowa companies."
Lt. Governor Judge will be joined by Iowa agriculture industry leaders from the Iowa Department of Economic Development, the Iowa Beef Industry Council, the Iowa Corn Growers Association, the Iowa Pork Producers Association, the Iowa Soybean Association, the Seed Company of Lynnville, CK International of Waukee, Hawkeye Gold LLC of Ames, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, and Iowa State University.
ABOUT JAPAN'S ROLE AS A PURCHASER OF IOWA EXPORTS
- Japan is the third largest purchaser of Iowa exports overall
- In 2006, Iowa exported more than $656 million in value-added and manufactured goods to Japan
- Japan is the number one export market for Iowa corn
- Japan is the number one export market for Iowa pork
- Japan is the number three export market for Iowa soybeans
- Japan is the third largest export market for Iowa manufactured and value-added goods, such as meat, medical instruments and pharmaceutical products