Iowa – India Round Table Meeting was organised by USSEC in which I participated as one of the Panellist. It was an honour to interact with Ms. Kim Reynolds, honourable Governor of Iowa State, USA. Governor Kim Reynolds is the 43rd governor of Iowa State and has the distinction of being the first woman elected to the office. During the round table meeting, I had good interaction with Mr. Mike Naig, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture, Mr. Gary Wynne, Agriculture and Energy Policy Advisor, Office of the Governor, State of Iowa and other delegation members from Iowa, USA.
Mr. Kevin Roepke, Regional Director, South Asia and Su Sahara Africa (SASSA), U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC) welcomed all delegates and introduced the Governed and other delegation members from Iowa.
This was followed by keynote address by Governor Kim Reynolds on Iowa-Freedom to Flourish. Mr. Mike Naig spoke on Iowa-India Ag cooperation. Mr. Nicole Podesta, Senior Agricultural Attaché, US Consulate, Mumbai spoke on USA-India Ag Cooperation. Mr. Randy Miller, USSEC Director gave nice presentation on Iowa Farming Technology Implementation. Mr. Sumit Gupta, CEO, WASEDA, gave an impressive presentation on India S&D imbalance.
Other speakers at the meeting were Mr. Divya Kumar Gulati, Chairman, CLFMA, Mr. Ricky Thaper, Mr. Sunil Kataria, CEO & MD, Godrej Agrovet Limited, Mr. Joe Dierickx, USSEC Director, Iowa Farm Bureau, Mr. Joe Robert’s, Director, Iowa Corn Promotion Board and Mr. Tom Adam, President, Iowa Soybean Association.
The Roundtable dialogue focused on advancing collaboration between Iowa and India in agriculture, agri science, renewable energy and allied sectors, building a stronger bridge for trade, technology and investment.
Mr. Franklin, Country Team Lead-India, USSEC gave closing remark. This was followed by the Networking Reception, attended by all invites, fostering new partnerships and collaborative opportunities.
It was nice to represent the poultry industry in such a strategic forum and contribute to advancing sustainable practices, innovative solutions, and strengthening the soy and poultry value chains in India. If we negate the effect of tariff, there are very good chances of import of US Soybean Meal by Indian Poultry Industry. The insights and learnings from this event will help drive positive impact and foster greater collaboration within the industry.
