Hopped off the plane at MSP. 

With a goal and knowledge to gain.  

Welcome to the land of soybeans – or something like that, sang Miley Cyrus.   

Trade teams from several countries found their way to Matt Purfeerst, Keith Schrader, Matt Schreurs and Jeff Ignaszewski’s Minnesota farms. 

“It was really exciting to meet with those who I feel are friends and partners in the ag industry,” said Schrader, a former Minnesota Soybean Research & Promotion Council (MSR&PC) director. 

During visits, the farmers spent time fielding questions about the heart of their operations, covering everything from crop insurance to growing conditions, acreage (then converted to hectares), equipment, input costs, yield and other questions on their personal lives.   

“I think they gain trust between the farmer and the customer,” Schrader said on the importance of these trade missions. “I think it gives them a feeling of honesty in the product that we produce, and that personal touch is very important. We’ve always noticed that most of these buyers are very family-oriented as well, and so they love to see families together and different generations. It’s about gaining this mutual trust and respect.” 

These visits were a collaborative arranged by the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC) and supported by the Minnesota soybean checkoff.  

The first group touring Purfeerst’s farm was comprised of those employed in the swine industry in China. In 2023, China purchased over $18 billion in U.S. soybeans. Roughly one in three rows of soybeans in Minnesota are exported to China. 

“My goal is to show them that we are responsibly raising our crops,” said Purfeerst, who serves as a director with the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association. “China is a huge trade partner with us, so they’re taking a lot of our soybeans every year. We hope they are able to understand that we’re growing them right. We really appreciate the business they’re providing for us, because without them I don’t even want to know what the price of our soybeans would be.” 

Purfeerst hosted a second trade team Aug. 24. 

“We need to continue building partnerships with other countries,” Purfeerst said. “That ultimately helps our demand side of it, so it’s great they’re coming here, and hopefully we can continue going over there and keep building that bond.” 

Trade teams visited from Southeast Asia, North Africa and Central America. 

At Schrader’s farm, attendees climbed in an empty grain bin, inspected a sprayer up close and sat in a tractor – all new experiences for them.  

“They really have the opportunity to see the high production efficiency and sustainability at play here that helps promote U.S. soybeans,” said Richard Han, technical director of USSEC. “This visit is meant to be a setting for ideas to be exchanged and build trust, while learning about the soybean market.” 

With thousands of miles between the producer and end consumer, MSR&PC prioritizes building relationships with international customers. On Aug. 13, Lincoln County Corn & Soybean Growers Chair Matt Schreurs hosted a group of 40 soy industry stakeholders from 18 different countries on his farm as part of NCI’s INTSOY course.  

“I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but I think it went quite well,” said Schreurs, who grows roughly 2,500 acres of soybeans and corn near Arco. “It was nice to see the faces of some of the people that are buying our products and to be able to answer some of the questions of curiosity.”  

At Ignaszewski’s farm, the Chinese trade team focused on the multiple layers of crop insurance.  

“I thought it went really well,” Ignaszewski said. “A lot of it was on crop insurance, and with our struggling year we had this year, they want to make sure that we keep planting. Insurance money from planting doesn’t do them any good. They want the soybeans. They want to be ensured that we are going to continue planting, and hopefully our infrastructure is enough, so we can keep going, so we can keep our trade relations going.” 

To close out this summer’s farm visits, a trade team with members from Japan and Korea will visit a Southern Minnesota farm at the end of September.