A mission from the US Grains Council (USGC) earlier this month visited Turkey, seeking ways to expand demand for US distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) and create demand for US sorghum in that market.

Turkey was once a strong market for US corn co-products such as DDGS and corn gluten feed (CGF), but in 2009 the country enacted a biosafety law that led to unstable imports of these US products, the export trade group said. The law does not allow imports containing genetically modified corn events not approved by the country.

USGC said its market assessment mission would support its future work with local industry on overcoming the hurdles for US DDGS and considering other grain imports such as sorghum. That plant does not face biotech-related barriers.

Turkey needs feed imports for livestock and poultry rations to meet rising demand for protein products from its 80 million citizens. At the same time it is a net exporter of food goods to the Middle East.

 

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