USDA reports a significant jump in ethanol exports to China this year, following a USDA-led trade mission to the country last year. Wednesday, USDA said the trade mission proved successful after representatives from nine state departments of agriculture and 28 U.S. companies, including renewable fuels businesses, traveled to northeast China to explore opportunities for trade in the region.
U.S. ethanol exports to China have jumped from $8 million to more than $86 million since the May 2014 visit. In October, the U.S. exported more ethanol to China than in the previous 10 years combined, according to USDA Under Secretary for Farm And Foreign Agricultural Services Michael Scuse. China is the largest market for U.S. food and farm products – U.S. agricultural exports to China tripled over the last decade, now accounting for nearly 20 percent of all foreign sales of U.S. agricultural products. The past seven years have represented the strongest period for American agricultural exports, with U.S. agricultural product exports totaling $911.3 billion between Fiscal Years 2009 and 2015.