Gov. Jim Doyle announced today that Wisconsin agricultural exports have reached a record $975 million for the first half of 2008, a 13 percent increase over the first half of 2007.
Fueling that growth was 59 percent increase in dairy exports, up from $76 million in the first half of 2007 to $121 million in the first half of 2008. Dairy genetics exports grew by 35 percent to $31 million for the first half of the year. Exports of dried distillers grains and solubles, which are used as livestock feed, have grown 169 percent to $17 million.
Doyle made the announcement during a press conference at the 40th Annual U.S. Midwest-Japan Conference in Milwaukee.
The conference, which runs through tomorrow, is bringing together business and government leaders from the Midwest and Japan for sessions on technology, strategic partnerships, sustainable growth, global trade and investment and other activities.
Attendees this morning heard from Doyle, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman, Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland and Govs. Kiyoshi Ueda and Akiko Domoto of Japan. Also speaking was Michael Beeman, deputy assistant U.S. trade representative for Japan, and Ichiro Fujisaki, ambassador of Japan to the United States.
Doyle said the conference isn’t intended to be a deal-making conference, but is instead focused on building relationships and being a forum for an exchange of ideas.
Noting how each of the U.S. governors who spoke boasted of their business climates and established trading ties with Japan, Doyle said there is a “fine balance” between cooperation and competition among the states.
“On the one hand, it’s very important that we promote ourselves regionally and that this not be a competition between one Midwest state and another state,” Doyle said. “The purpose of this is really to promote this as a Midwest region. But obviously there’s also little bit of trying to make sure people understand that Wisconsin is the best one of those states to do business in.”
Doyle described the relationship between Japan and the Midwestern states as “extremely beneficial to both sides.”
Outside of Canada and Mexico, Doyle said Japan is “Wisconsin’s most important trading partner.”
Doyle said there are large markets for Wisconsin agricultural and manufacturing products in Japan along with strong cultural relations and educational exchanges in the biosciences.
During his address, Fujisaki, the Japanese ambassador, focused on the economic and political ties between the U.S. and Japan. He noted that both leading presidential candidates have expressed desire to continue positive relations with Japan.
“I am very happy that we will be having an American leader who we can trust,” Fujisaki said.
He noted that Japan will have a new prime minister in two weeks, and he said he is convinced that the new Japanese leader would make positive relations between the U.S. and Japan “the highest priority.”
Beeman urged Japan to re-examine its restrictions on U.S. beef imports, but praised the country for reforming many of its regulations to open up Japanese markets to U.S. products.
Due to numerous regulatory and tariff issues, Beeman said a free trade agreement “would be the most ambitious undertaking we’ve had with Japan to date,” but that it is an “intriguing idea,” although “the time may not be ripe today.”
