Check-in on the Checkoff: Building Markets Beyond Iowa’s Boarders

By: Joe Roberts

Joe Roberts is a farmer from Belmond, Iowa, and serves as the Iowa Corn Promotion Board (ICPB) President and on the Exports and The Grain Trade Committee. 

I’m sure many of you, like myself, are “patiently” awaiting the arrival of spring to get out in the field for planting season. Though it may seem that winter will drag on forever, this time of year is extremely valuable for building and planning export growth for Iowa grown corn and corn products. 

In February, Iowa Corn farmer leaders headed south to the U.S. Grains & BioProducts Council (USGBC) annual meeting in Panama. The meeting hosted impactful conversations around new markets, the Panama Canal and discussions of the Council’s upcoming global trade strategy in Latin America and the Asia Pacific. 

The theme, “The Time is Now!”, isn’t just a slogan—it’s a call to action. In Iowa, we produce more corn and ethanol than we can use locally. To keep our farms profitable, we must be aggressive in global markets. The Council isn’t just promoting corn, but corn in all forms, like ethanol and DDGS, to open markets around the globe. 

This outreach doesn’t happen by chance. It’s fueled by our checkoff dollars. Investing in the USGBC puts experts on the ground in 28 locations worldwide, fighting trade barriers and finding new buyers for corn in all forms while we’re busy in the field. 

Continuing to fund these efforts isn’t an expense—it’s an investment in the future of every Iowa grown corn acre. Learn more at www.iowacorn.org/corn-market-development/us-corn-exports.

Thank you, 

Joe Roberts 

Iowa Corn Promotion Board President