There are a lot of factors to consider when selling and purchasing soy: quality, protein or oil content, price and logistics, just to name a few.

Another element that may be overlooked is relationships.

Through year-round touchpoints with international customers, Northern Soy Marketing (NSM) is reinforcing the importance of building, growing and maintaining relationships in trade. During NSM’s winter webinar “Understanding U.S. Soy Quality and Market Update,” farmer leaders and industry experts reconnected with international participants of its 2023 and 2024 fall crop tours.

NSM Chair Glen Groth hosted the 2024 crop tour participants on his farm near Ridgeway, Minn. During the webinar, he updated the group with results of harvest on his farm and in the U.S, reporting slightly lower yields in the states that make up NSM: Minnesota, Wisconsin and South Dakota. Total U.S. yield was essentially flat year over year.  Glen also gave an update on his family, whom the participants enjoyed meeting in October.

“That’s part of the reason I’m here today – to provide a stable livelihood for the next generation of the family farm,” Groth said when talking about his daughters.

With the price of many goods higher, Groth reported expecting another year of tight margins and high production costs, which may lead to many limiting their spending on personal goods or upgrades on the farm.

“What we don’t shorten ourselves on though, is producing high-quality beans,” said Groth.

The webinar also included an overview of soy supply and markets for soybeans and soymeal from Alvaro Cordero, senior export trader for AGP. With expected U.S. soymeal production expected to reach 24 million metric tons in the coming year, the U.S. will continue to be a reliable supplier of meal. Cordero also touched on some of AGP’s recent investments, including a new soy processing plant and degumming facility in David City, Neb., and the T4 terminal at Grays Harbor. Participants on the 2024 crop tour toured the existing export ship loading facility at Grays Harbor and saw the first truckloads of supplies being delivered for construction of the T4 project.

University of Minnesota Extension Agronomist Dr. Seth Naeve presented on results of the annual Soy Quality Report, an annual study analyzing the quality of the U.S. soybean crop intended to provide new crop quality data to aid international customers with their purchasing decisions. Naeve reported a good overall crop for protein (34%) and oil (19.9%), both 0.3% higher than 2023. The states in NSM’s region also reported slightly higher levels of protein than average.

Dr. Bob Swick wrapped up the webinar assessing the quality and value of U.S. soymeal. Swick reiterated the importance of digestible amino acids to the diets of livestock and poultry, rather than only crude protein, and recent research supporting this idea.

All four presenters, as well as NSM Vice Chair David Struck and Director Mike McCranie, both growers from South Dakota, will participate in NSM’s trade mission in February to Indonesia. The mission in Indonesia will include another chance to reconnect with crop tour participants through a seminar and one-on-one company visits.