Brandt, McLeeson Join MAIZALL Mission To Brazil

Earlier this month, U.S. Grains & BioProducts Council (USGBC) Director of Trade Policy Andrew Brandt and USGBC Manager of Trade Policy Sarah McLeeson traveled to São Paulo, Brazil as part of a MAIZALL delegation participating in the GAFFFF Global Agribusiness Festival.

The festival was a premier forum that explored and discussed trends, innovations and challenges in the agricultural sector while advancing sustainability and presented an opportunity for the Council to share updates on its work promoting biotechnology and modern production practices for agriculture.

MAIZALL is a coalition of leading corn industry stakeholders based in the U.S., Brazil, and Argentina seeking to advance global adoption of corn and corn co-products derived from biotechnology. The Council is a MAIZALL member as part of its goal to reduce trade barriers for biotechnology.

"By bringing together stakeholders from both rural and urban communities, the festival fostered meaningful dialogue and collaboration on agricultural innovation, with a particular focus on the advancement and market access of seed technologies that enhance productivity, sustainability, and food security," Brandt said.

McLeeson spoke on a panel about how sustainable production practices and biotechnology can help facilitate access for feed grains like corn in more mature international markets.

In addition to participating in the forum, the delegation visited MAIZALL Director Bernhard Kiep's farm outside of São Paulo to further discuss sustainable corn growth and future MAIZALL program opportunities.

"Harnessing tools like the Council's Corn Sustainability Assurances Protocol and participating in these international forums highlight corn's ability to be a stable, sustainable feed input for customers around the world," Brandt said.

"We look forward to future engagements with MAIZALL to reach policymakers and other leaders for the advancement of global corn trade."

Learn more about the Council's work in corn on the organization's website.