Opening Ceremony and Trade & Business Dialogue
Jinan, Shandong Province, China - June 7, 2024
Over 300 attendees from both the U.S. and China convened in Jinan, the capital of Shandong Province, the #1 Agriculture province of China, for the Opening Ceremony/Trade & Business Dialogue of the 2024 (4th annual) U.S. – China Agriculture Roundtable on June 7, 2024.
The opening ceremony featured welcome remarks and speeches from governmental and industry leaders and a Signing and Launching Ceremony. Representatives of the host organizations–including Zhou Naixiang, Vice Secretary of the Shandong Provincial Committee and Governor of Shandong province, Yang Wanming, President of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), and Susan Thornton, USHCA Vice Chair–provided opening remarks, each underscoring the importance of deepening U.S.-China agricultural cooperation, advocating for expanded trade, technology transfer, and modern techniques to both meet global demand and ensure sustainability.
The United States government was represented by the U.S. Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China, R. Nicholas Burns, who provided virtual remarks, as well as the U.S. Department of Agriculture, represented by Mr. Robert Hanson, Minister Counsellor of Agriculture at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.
The Signing and Launching Ceremony involved the signing of three MOUs.
The first MOU established the “China (Shandong)-U.S. Agricultural Exchange and Cooperation Mechanism,” with ambitions to “deepen practical cooperation in agriculture, pool resources together and leverage each other’s strengths for common development, advance agricultural technology cooperation and people-to-people exchanges, and further expand trade of agro-products.” This MOU was signed by representatives of the U.S. Soybean Export Council, the U.S. Grains Council, Shandong Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, and Shandong Provincial Foreign Affairs Office.
Second, the “Launching of China (Shandong)-U.S. Food and Agri-Products Trading Express,” is an invitation for participating American associations to join the Cross-border Service Unified Purchase Platform for Food and Agricultural Products, which is an online platform with over 6,000 members of enterprises.
Third, the “Launching of China (Shandong)-U.S. ‘New Farmers’ Exchange Program,” marks an agreement between signing American universities and Shandong agricultural academies (such as Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shandong Agricultural University and Qingdao Agricultural University) to pursue shared educational and research opportunities around agriculture.
The Trade & Business Segment of the program started with two panels on topics of critical importance to modern agriculture development and research, with market experts, and growers from both the U.S. and China sharing their insights and professional experiences.
The first panel explored the differences and synergies around Climate-Smart Agriculture between the U.S.and China. Moderated by Min Fan, USHCA Executive Director, this panel included Mr. Stan Born, immediate past Chair of the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC) and current Chair of the American Soybean Association’s Trade Policy & International Affairs Advocacy Team; Mr. Wang Yong, Vice President, Shandong Agricultural University; Mr. Yong Gao, Vice President, Bayer (China) Limited; Mr. Adam Schindler, Past Chairman of Sorghum Checkoff Board of Directors; and Mr. Bruce Zhu, Government Relations Director for China Operations Support, ADM.
The second panel focused on new opportunities for technological innovation and agriculture, featuring a dialogue between growers, producers, and biotech leaders moderated by Linda Jing, CEO of Genective and USHCA Board Member. The panelists included: Mr. Song Weipin, Dabeinong CEO; Mr. Robert Petter, Director, United Soybean Board; Libo Shi, Technical director of North China region, MAP and Digital agriculture, Syngenta Group China; Mr. Li Shunxiu, General Manager, Shandong Yuwang Ecological Food Industry Co., Ltd; and Mr. Niu Xiaomu, CSO & Deputy General Manager, Shandong Shunfeng Biotechnology Co., Ltd.
For business leaders in attendance, the afternoon was devoted to the China (Shandong)-US Agriculture Business Matchmaking Conference with a focus on new business opportunities and a 2-hour matchmaking session.
A Friendship Reception Dinner with traditional Chinese music performance topped this day of rich exchanges. The American student delegates also contributed an impromptu music performance to show their appreciation of the incredible hospitality of their Shandong hosts.
Over the next two days, our Shandong hosts arranged various site visits for the American delegates to visit local agricultural enterprises and observe cutting-edge practices in sustainable agriculture in the cities of Binzhou and Weifang. Site visits included trips to Shandong Xiang Chi Group, Sanxing Group, Shandong Junhui Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Company Limited, Binzhou Zhongyu Food Industry Co., Ltd., Shandong Shouguang Juneng Golden Corn Co., Ltd, Zhengde (Shandong) Supply Chain Co., Ltd, Shouguang Danhe Demonstration Park for Standardized Production of Greenhouse Vegetables, and a visit to the Heli Livestock Farming Rural Complex. These visits not only facilitated interactive real-time sharing and learning between the American delegates and the Chinese experts but also highlighted the benefit of broader adoption of innovative agricultural technologies.
Our delegations left Shandong deeply impressed by the advance of modern agriculture technologies in Shandong and the vast business potential that still exists between the two largest agricultural producers of the world.