Wendong Zhang, assistant professor, and John Lawrence, vice president for Extension and Outreach, spoke about ag trade with China to about 300 people at the Mason City Ag Breakfast, as reported by the Globe Gazette, March 20, 2019.
Zhang said he believes the U.S. is nearing a trade agreement with China, but his greatest concern is how that agreement will be flushed out over a period of time.
“We need to pay more attention to non-tariff barriers and China’s public standards,” he said. “For example, before 2017, they allowed 2 percent foreign matter in grain, but they cut it to 1 percent. We need to pay more attention to these things to obtain structural growth.”
Lawrence gave a brief history of Iowa State and its extension program. Lawrence said there are tremendous opportunities for today’s agricultural students. He said there are about 57,900 retirees in ag-related jobs each year with approximately 35,400 graduates to replace them.