08/13/08 Japanese barley trade team in Idaho

A seven member barley trade team from Japan was in north Idaho investigating opportunities to import US barley. The team spent time last week visiting Idaho Barley Commissioner Dan Mader's farm in Genesee. MADER "We showed them the facilities that it moves through, inland and at the river both, and so they get a feel for where the plant start, where it grows and matures, where it goes to and kind of the lines of transportation all the way to the river, down the river and on over to the East." Japan is the largest export customer of US barley buying more than 546 thousand metric tons in the past year. That includes about two thousand tons of value added food barley called 'Salute' that is grown in the Genesee area. MADER "There's a lot of interest in the same thing in Taiwan. So it appears that all of Asia may have some interest from a health improving diet standpoint." Mader says Japan now imports all of its feed barley and a portion of its food barley. Voice of Idaho Agriculture Bill Scott