The Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) organized a 22-member Agriculture Trade Goodwill Mission traveling to the United States in September 2022. The U.S. Grains Council is seen as a trusted ambassador for trade between the U.S. and Taiwan.  As a result, the Council sponsored five members who are AG-Food industrial leaders to join the delegation.

Since 1998, there have been 14 goodwill missions sent to the U.S. with tremendous results – over 5.6 billion bushels of U.S. grains have been purchased on these missions with a value of $37.9 billion. Taiwan has been among the top 10 importers of U.S. agricultural products since 1993.

In 2021, Taiwan was the seventh-largest market for U.S. corn, soybeans, and wheat and the seventh-largest importer of U.S. agricultural products overall, taking in nearly $3.9 billion. More than one-fifth of Taiwan’s agricultural imports come from the United States, further demonstrating Taiwanese consumers’ preference for top-quality U.S. goods.

The purpose of this biannual mission is to build relationships between members of the Taiwanese industry and U.S. suppliers by signing Letters of Intent (LOI) outlining Taiwan’s intended purchases of corn, beans, wheat, and meat products from the U.S. during 2023 and 2024. The Chairman of U.S. Grains Council and the Chairman of Taiwan Feed Industry Association jointly signed a Letter of Intent committing to purchase 1.5 MMT of U.S. corn and 250 TMT of U.S. DDGS in 2023 and 2024 with a total value of $600 million. The LOI signing ceremony took place on Capitol Hill in Washington DC, witnessed by 28 members of the U.S. House and Senate and six Taiwan legislators.

During their time in the United States, mission participants traveled to Washington, D.C., Minnesota, Kentucky, Iowa, and Illinois to have face-to-face meetings with U.S. government officials, governors, senators, congressmen, grain producer, and key leaders of related producers’ associations. During their travels, participants toured farms, plants, and logistic facilities to learn about the U.S. agricultural value chain.

It is the first Taiwan Agricultural Trade Goodwill Mission to visit the U.S. after the pandemic and it showcased the stronger agricultural trade relations between Taiwan and the U.S. It helped the mission members to understand the quality of U.S. grains, educated them about the advantages of using U.S. grains and related co-products and impressed them with the capability of the U.S. grains export system.

Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) initiated and organized this trade mission. U.S. Grains Council hosted the delegation in Washington D.C. and facilitated their meetings around the country.  The Council invested $40,866 in this marketing program, generating a return on investment of $14,682 per $1 of MAP funds invested.