Aquaculture may sound like a topic for animal agriculture, but these days one of the biggest factors is soybeans.  ZimmComm’s Jamie Johansen recently returned from a trip to Panama City, Panama for the 2017 Aquaculture Education Opportunity, hosted by the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC) and Soy Aquaculture Alliance (SAA). U.S. soybean growers, researchers and aquaculture experts gathered to take in the latest and visit the Panama Canal to witness the center of global trade and the import role U.S. soy plays in the international economy.

SAA Executive Director, Bridget Owen, has spent her career devoted to the soybean community working at various levels of the supply chain. Now on the receiving end of the protein, Bridget shares the role of SAA and what this growth in aquaculture means to U.S. soybean growers.

“We have incredible resources that allow us to be competitive. Number one is our U.S. soybean growers who produce a very high quality, consistent and cost effective product. U.S. is a fantastic resource for the aquaculture industry in the U.S. and overseas. We also have incredible transportation resources and access through the Panama Canal to overseas markets lets us compete. The ability to move our soy products overseas quickly and in a cost efficient, secure way is important to our customers. There are some many ways U.S. soy delivers to our customers domestically and internationally and our infrastructure is a part of that.”

Listen to Jamie’s complete interview with Bridget here: [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/ussoy-panama-17-bridget-saa.mp3″ text=”Bridget Owen, Soy Aquaculture Alliance”]

View and download photos from the event here: 2017 USSEC Aquaculture Educational Opportunity Photos