Council Programs Aim to Increase U.S. Feed Grains Demand in Expanding Chinese Dairy Sector
Published:May 22, 2009
Source :U.S. Grains Council news
The U.S. Grains Council has been working with the Chinese commercial dairy sector as it transitions from small herds to large, by providing insight on modern management techniques.
A team of nine American, Canadian and Chinese-American professors and specialists, well-versed in both U.S. and Chinese dairy industry practices, were the featured speakers on-site and via video conference at the Sixth Modern Dairy Management Training Course in China last week. The course, sponsored by the U.S. Grains Council, had 36 participants.
Selected based on recommendation by the provincial dairy associations, large dairy and livestock companies and former course participants, the trainees represented a cross-section of the Chinese dairy industry.
The course was a combination of classroom instruction and hands-on experience at the Sino-U.S. Dairy Training Center at the Huaxia Dairy Farm, a newly established modern demonstration farm.
As China looks to expand its dairy production capabilities, the Council is working to increase demand for U.S. feed grains through educating dairy employees on the subjects of feeding and nutrition, forage quality analysis and feed ration formulation, among general management protocols.
China has already proven to be a growing market for U.S. distiller's dried grains with solubles, importing 8,500 metric tons in 2008, an increase from 1,200 tons in 2007, according to USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service.
Eugene Chen, USGC technical program manager in Beijing, said, "The advanced technology and experience with the modern U.S. dairy industry through the training course is very timely and useful to Chinese dairy farms."