China's Demand For Soybeans

As China’s population continues to swell, to too does that country’s demand for meat, which in turn creates a growing reliance for U.S. soybeans. Soybean production in China has actually been on the decline over the last few years because more land there is continually being switched to grow corn, due to the fact that the return on soybeans for farmers in China is far less than what they get for corn. At the same time, China’s ever growing urban population’s demand for meat creates an urgent need for ingredients used for livestock feed. China favors soybeans over feed grain because it’s cheaper to export and can still be used to bulk up cattle and poultry for mass consumption. In the past China has complained about the quality of U.S. soybeans in terms of protein, but China now reports that they find the quality of U.S. soybeans to be very good, and that they are very happy to buy U.S. soybeans in the coming year, to the tune of over 317 million bushels. In fact, China purchased nearly sixty percent of the U.S. soybeans sold internationally last year. It does make you wonder though if the United States will be able to continue to satisfy China’s insatiable appetite for soybeans.