Heartland Connect

腹地商贸通

for Trade & Investment

商贸交流会

August 25th, 2025 - Chicago, IL

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Event Overview

Heartland Connect for Trade & Investment is an exclusive gathering specifically designed for local and business leaders from both the U.S. and China to explore new partnerships and opportunities in the Heartland Region. In partnership with the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce Chicago and with support from many U.S. and Chinese partners, this premier bilateral event brings together government officials, industry executives, agricultural innovators, healthcare leaders, and food sector professionals to foster meaningful dialogue and create actionable collaborations.

Building on the success of the annual U.S.-China Agriculture Roundtable, first launched in 2021, this expanded format now encompasses three critical industry sectors that define the economic backbone of America’s Heartland: Agriculture, Food, and Healthcare.

Event Agenda

Opening Ceremony & Morning Program

Welcome Remarks

  1. Ms. Susan Thornton, USHCA Vice Chair
  2. Ambassador Xie Feng video remarks
  3. Mr. Ni Pin, CGCCC Chairman
  4. Former IL Gov. Pat Quinn
  5. John Atkinson, Chairman of Intersect IL
  6. Director Liao Fan, Director, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS)
  7. Ms. Ba Cuicui (CPAFFC, Deputy Director)
  8.  Sean Stein
  9. Consul General Wang, Chinese Consulate in Chicago
  10. Min Fan, Executive Director U.S. Heartland China Association

Subnational Leaders Panel

Local leadership and regional collaboration are at the heart of building resilient partnerships between the U.S. and China. This panel brings together mayors and provincial leaders from both countries to share their perspectives on advancing trade, investment, and people-to-people ties at the sub-national level. Through candid dialogue, panelists will discuss how communities in both countries are navigating global challenges, strengthening local economies, and creating practical pathways for cooperation in agriculture, food, and health. 

  1. Moderator: Ms. Susan Thornton
  2. Mr. Li Hongtao, Deputy Director-General of the FAO, Henan Province
  3. Mayor of Rochester, Minnesota, Ms. Kim Norton
  4. Liang Feng, Executive Vice President of SPAFFC
  5. Mayor Nathaniel Booker, Maywood, Illinois
  6. Zhang Guoliang, Executive Vice President of LPAFFC

Ag Leaders Panel

Agriculture remains one of the most promising areas for U.S.-China cooperation, offering complementary strengths and vital opportunities for trade, investment, and innovation. This panel brings together government officials, trade experts, and business innovators from both countries to tackle a pressing question: how can we, as ag leaders, work together to compartmentalize agriculture from high-level political tensions and get trade moving forward again? Through candid discussion, participants will explore what can be done collectively to promote agricultural trade and collaboration as well as advance shared goals that strengthen food security and sustainability for both nations, and the world.

  • Moderator: Mr. Jim Sutter
  1. Ms. Linda Jing, CEO of Genective
  2. Mr. Drew Combs, Executive Director of the North Dakota Trade Office
  3. President Cao Derong, China Chamber of Commerce of Import & Export of Foodstuffs, Native Produce & Animal By-Products (CFNA)
  4. Janna Fritz, Chair, American Soybean Association
  5. Mr. Brian Naber, President of North America & Australia/New Zealand for Bayer Crop Science
  6. HUANG Xianqing, Dean, College of Food Science and Technology, Henan Agriculture University

Health/Healthcare leaders Panel

Both the U.S. and China are struggling with similar challenges around better health outcomes for its people, this Roundtable will convene experts from both countries to explore what can we learn from each other, identify actionable initiatives going forward, and lay the groundwork for future collaboration for the mutual benefit of the U.S., China, and the world.

  • Moderator: Mr. Scott Tackett
  1. Mayor of Rochester, MN, Ms. Kim Norton
  2. Ms. Rita Xie, Intuitive-Fosun
  3. Mr. Ross DeVol, Chairman Emeritus and Distinguished Fellow, and former CEO of Heartland Forward
  4. Dr. (Ms.) Xifeng Wu, Director of National Institute for Data Science in Health and Medicine, Zhejiang University

Lunch Program

Welcome Remarks

  1. Christy George, CEO of Intersect IL
  2. Phil Clement, CEO of World Business Chicago
  3. Dr. LI Qingjuan, Director of Shanghai NGO Network for International Exchanges (click here to watch presentation)
  4. Performance by Violinist Kyle Dillingham, Oklahoma Cultural Ambassador (click here to read more about Kyle Dillingham and his band, Horseshoe Road)

Industry roundtables

Agriculture Roundtables

Inspired by legendary scientists Norman Borlaug, Yuan Longping, and George Washington Carver.

Ag Trade & Business Dialogue

This opening panel will dive into the practical realities and emerging opportunities in U.S.-China agricultural trade and investment. Beyond trends and policy outlooks, the conversation will focus on what is happening on the ground; how agribusiness leaders are navigating uncertainty, the market dynamics they are seeing, and developments in key areas such as livestock production, sustainability, and agricultural innovation. Panelists will share lessons learned from working in both countries, offering a down-to-earth perspective on the next stage of bilateral engagement. 

  • Moderator: Jim Sutter, CEO, USSEC
  1. Jeremy Barron, Head of Derivative Sales, Amius
  2. Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Deputy Director WANG Yongzhong (Sino-U.S. Trade relations and ag cooperation)
  3. Tony Clayton, President ClaytonAgri-Marketing, Inc. (click to view presentation)
  4. Ms. Yingxin WANG, Deputy General Manager, Yihai Kerry (Harbin) Grain and Oil Food Industry Co., Ltd.
  5. Mr. Zhixiang Zhang, Executive Director of the New Business Department, TECH-BANK Food Co., Ltd.

Climate-Smart Agriculture Dialogue

As climate change reshapes the global agricultural landscape, U.S. and Chinese farmers, agribusiness leaders, and researchers face both unprecedented challenges and new opportunities for collaboration. This session will explore how climate-smart practices can boost productivity, protect natural resources, and strengthen food security while creating economic benefits for rural communities. Drawing on expertise from across the value chain, panelists will discuss the latest innovations in sustainable farming, soil health, and low-carbon food production. Building on the momentum of the annual U.S.-China Agriculture Roundtable, this conversation will highlight practical pathways for knowledge exchange and technology adoption between the Heartland and China.

Moderator: Megan Smith, Land O’Lakes, Venture 37

  1. CASS – Wei Wei
  2. USSEC Grower Leader Mike McCranie, USSEC Vice Chair
  3. Ms. Kelly McGinnis, Executive Director, One Mississippi
  4. Dr. (Ms.) Holly Wang Michigan State University (click to view presentation)

Agriculture Investment Trends

This closing panel will discuss current trends impacting farmers and new technological solutions, including; digital agriculture, i.e. utilizing information for generative artificial intelligence, robotics, automation, and precision agriculture; ag biotech, i.e. the range of new opportunities in biologics and genetics, such as biocontrols, biostimulants, GMO’s along with gene editing/CRISPR technologies; food safety and the MAHA movement, i.e. exploring how global food waste presents an opportunity for better production practices, such as blockchain solutions for ag supply chain transparency and GLP-1 challenges at a consumer level; as well as touch upon new developments in climate smart solutions.

  • Moderator: Jim Schultz 
  1. Ron Meeusen – Cultivian Sandbox Ventures.
  2. Renee Vassilos – the Nature Conservancy

 

Health Roundtable

Health RT Panel Descriptions

This panel brings together leading voices from the public health, medical technology, and academic sectors to explore the opportunities in U.S.-China collaboration around shared health challenges, such as aging populations and shifting disease burdens. Panelists will discuss how breakthroughs in health technology, medical research, and care delivery are reshaping outcomes and economic trajectories. With perspectives spanning research, policy, and industry, the conversation will highlight shared challenges and opportunities for collaboration in addressing the health needs of tomorrow’s population.

Networking Reception

Dinner

The evening dinner at Heartland Connect for Trade & Investment premiered the Future Ag Leaders Delegation video, which documented USHCA’s recent trip bringing 20 young agricultural leaders from the Heartland to Beijing and Henan.

The delegation’s journey demonstrated the next generation’s commitment to strengthening ties through agriculture, and reminded attendees of the importance of investing in youth exchange to build trust and cooperation. The program received vital support from the U.S. Soy industry, including the U.S. Soybean Export Council, which championed this opportunity to promote American agriculture on a global stage.

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