India Trade Delegation Visits Kansas to Strengthen Ties to Sorghum

In collaboration with the International Grains Program (IGP) at Kansas State University, the United Sorghum Checkoff Program (USCP), the U.S. Grains Council (USGC), and the Kansas Grain Sorghum Commission hosted a trade delegation from India in Manhattan,  as they attended a short-course to learn more about sorghum’s role as an ingredient in poultry rations, along with milling applications, storage methods, and more.

Under India’s ethanol blending mandate pathway through 2025, the Indian poultry sector will be short grain, allowing a window of opportunity for U.S. sorghum. Key staff who made this mission possible included Shelee Padgett, Brent Crafton, and Zach Simon from the Sorghum Checkoff, as well as Reece Cannady and Nayantara Pande from the U.S. Grains Council.

The event kicked off on Wednesday, Nov. 13, at the AgMark Terminal in Concordia, where facility manager Mark Paul highlighted the automation at the terminal. Staff from the Kansas Grain Inspection Service demonstrated grain screening and dockage procedures that ensure quality grain for export. That evening, Commission Vice Chair Kevin Kniebel and his son Clayton Kniebel hosted a meal for the group on their farm, fostering further discussion.

On Thursday, Nov. 14, IGP Institute staff continued training, focusing on sorghum’s characteristics, storage, handling, milling, and poultry nutrition in comparison to maize. A farewell dinner wrapped up the event, featuring a stir-fry sorghum menu and attended by Kansas Sorghum commissioners, K-State Grain Science & Industry Department Head Dr. Joseph Awika, K-State Western Kansas Research & Extension Department Head Dr. Brian Olson, KDA Director of Ag Marketing Dr. Russ Plaschka, NSP Chairwoman Amy France, Nu Life Market’s Rachel Klataske, and CSI’s Sarah Sexton-Bowser, among others.

Earlier this year, USCP, NSP, and USGC organized a trade exploratory mission to India, which remains a key market for U.S. sorghum, driven by dynamic demographic growth. This project, partially funded by the Kansas Sorghum Commission, builds on those earlier efforts.