Imports of U.S. distillers grains to the Philippines grew nearly 13 percent from 2011 to 2012 and there’s still potential for growth, according to the U.S. Grains Council.

Adel Yusupov, USGS regional director for Southeast Asia reported March 21 that imports to the Philippines in 2012 added up to 164,526 metric tons, an increase of 12.75 from the year before. USGS is continuing to work to promote the use of distillers grains in various areas of the country.

Most of the layer farms that are already using distillers grains are located in the South Luzon area of the Philippines. Some farms in this area have 15 percent inclusion levels already. In March, Adrian Morales, a USGC consultant, promoted the use of distillers grains and corn gluten meal in the North Luzon region of the Philippines, a relatively undeveloped market. During the trip he answered questions from feed millers, some of which had no experience with distillers grains, and met boiler and swine farmers in the area. “Visiting one-on-one with eight end users, including feed millers and large on-farm mix farmers, Morales highlighted advantages of using U.S. DDGS in the northern region,” Yusupov said. “While DDGS are currently priced out of the least cost ration formulation program, and are therefore replaced by cheaper feed stuffs such as corn and rice ban, there is still an opportunity to spread knowledge to attract future sales, when prices are favorable.”