October 2, 2013
www.gfb.org
Vol. 31 No. 40
CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS EXPORT OPPORTUNITIES With growing middle class populations in numerous countries around the world and the coming expansion in shipping capabilities out of the Port of Savannah, farmers and farm-related businesses could enjoy expanded opportunities to export their products, according to presenters at the International Agribusiness Conference & Expo (IACE). The event, for which Georgia Farm Bureau was a major sponsor, was held Sept. 25 & 26 in Savannah. The IACE was staged jointly by the University of Georgia’s College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences and the Georgia Southern University Department of Continuing Education. The event drew an estimated 200 participants according to conference organizers. According to Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal, who addressed the conference on Sept. 25, the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project (SHEP), which would increase the depth of the Savannah River by five feet in the channel leading to the Port of Savannah, will allow it to accept the larger ships that will be traveling through the Panama Canal after the completion of its expansion project, expected by mid-2015. Deal noted that 40 percent of the U.S. population relies on the Port of Savannah as a point of import or export and that the SHEP is down to the final administrative hurdles before dredging can begin. “We’re going to continue to work throughout our state to make sure that other parts of the state can take advantage of the opportunities that the port offers and will continue to offer, especially with the larger vessels,” Deal said. “I am convinced that what Georgia produces and produces efficiently, the world will buy if we give them the opportunity to do so.” Georgia is already one of the nation’s leading export states for chicken, pecans and cotton. Todd Gerken of the U.S. Commercial Service talked about the reasons to consider getting into the export business, noting that more than 95 percent of the world’s population lives outside the U.S. and that the U.S. percentage of the world economy has declined from about 50 percent just after World War II to less than 20 percent in 2010. He also said that the growth in per capita income in countries on every continent represents business opportunity for U.S. exporters. Dimitris Kloussiadis of the University of Georgia’s Small Business Development Center talked about factors to consider while deciding to enter the export business. Mascot Pecan Shelling Company owner Kenny Tarver discussed his company’s entry into the export business, which was made necessary by the rapid growth in demand for pecans in Asia. Eric Johnson, an international trade specialist with the U.S. Export Assistance Center Atlanta office, discussed he many services offered by federal government agencies to help businesses.