U.S. Grains & BioProducts Council (USGBC) Consultant for Senegal Daouda Guindo (left) and USGBC Deputy Regional Director for Africa Mohamed Salah Bouthour (middle) recently traveled to Guinea and Senegal to evaluate demand for U.S. corn and corn co-products in the livestock industries.
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Earlier this month, U.S. Grains & BioProducts Council (USGBC) Deputy Regional Director for Africa Mohamed Salah Bouthour and USGBC Consultant for Senegal Daouda Guindo traveled to Guinea and the Ivory Coast to promote U.S. corn and corn co-products in the poultry and livestock industries.

The Council’s engagements significantly strengthened its position as a trusted technical partner supporting the development of West Africa’s feed and livestock industries while creating new opportunities for future U.S. corn and corn co-product exports.

The Council teams met with leading feed manufacturers, grain importers, livestock producers and government stakeholders in Conakry, Guinea, identifying substantial market growth driven by major investments in feed manufacturing and poultry production.

“In Guinea, participants of the Council’s Feed Manufacturing Training Program confirmed the knowledge gained helped expand their businesses into additional sectors and expressed interest in additional staff training and acquiring grain quality testing equipment,” Bouthour said.

“These gains reinforced the value of the Council’s technical training programs and the launch of a national poultry production workshop next year that will further improve local production and reduce dependence on imported poultry meat.”

In the Ivory Coast, visits revealed a rapidly expanding feed industry, with major companies increasing production capacity, constructing new feed mills and preparing to import feed grains directly. U.S. grain trading companies are establishing operations in Abidjan, confirming the country’s emergence as a regional grain trading hub serving the Ivory Coast, Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea. These investments are expected to significantly increase future demand for imported corn and other feed ingredients.

The team also visited the country’s largest dairy operation, Djera Farm, to view its integrated production system spanning approximately 1,700 acres, combining forage and grain production, dairy cattle, sheep, goats, poultry, on-farm feed manufacturing and milk processing.

Recognizing the farm’s commitment to innovation, the Council identified it as a partner for future technical cooperation in dairy nutrition, feed manufacturing, grain quality and livestock productivity.

“The Council is helping build the technical capacity needed to create a stronger and more reliable livestock industry by improving local milk production, increasing farm productivity and strengthening feed management,” Bouthour said.

“The partnership is expected to generate demand for high-quality feed ingredients, including U.S. corn and corn co-products, while contributing to greater food security and reducing dependence on imported dairy products in the Ivory Coast.”