Pennsylvania Soybean Board Adopts New Strategic Plan
HARRISBURG, PA (August 22, 2016) — A new strategic plan that charts the future course of the Pennsylvania Soybean Board was adopted by the farmer/leaders of the Board at its August meeting.
The plan is the culmination of a yearlong process to determine priorities for the use of checkoff funding to improve the efficiency, profitability, and sustainability of Pennsylvania soybean producers. The funding available through the checkoff is available under an assessment program in which soybean farmers contribute 50 cents of every $100 they receive for their beans at the first point of sale.
The six key objectives of the new strategic plan are to:
1. Advance animal agriculture in Pennsylvania. (Animal agriculture is the number one domestic customer for soybean meal.)
2. Encourage awareness and use of sustainable agricultural production practices.
3. Provide sound information on the benefits of GMO production to key influencers and decision makers.
4. Foster awareness of the market potential of new varieties of soybeans, including high oleic soybeans. (High oleic soybean varieties produce oil that has unique benefits for food and industrial users and could increase the value of all U.S. soybeans.)
5. Educate key influencers and decision makers about the issues, benefits and challenges of agriculture in Pennsylvania.
6. Promote the use of soybean-based biofuels and bio-heat through partnering opportunities.
Pennsylvania Soybean Board Chairman Bill Beam said the strategic plan will guide the Board as it considers checkoff-funded research priorities, educational opportunities, outreach and other projects.
“The plan’s success involves allocating the resources we have for the maximum benefit of soybean producers,” says Beam. “Through this plan, we aim to fulfill our new Mission, to ‘invest soybean checkoff resources for the purpose of advancing soybeans in the Commonwealth, enhancing sustainability, and providing opportunities for Pennsylvania soybean growers.’”
About the Pennsylvania Soybean Board
The Pennsylvania Soybean Board is a farmer-controlled Board responsible for managing Pennsylvania’s share of funds received from the nationwide Soybean Checkoff program. The funding is available under an assessment program, approved by Congress in 1990, under which soybean farmers contribute 50 cents of every $100 they receive for their beans at the first point of sale. Funds are used to develop markets, educate consumers, and research new ways to utilize and produce soybeans more efficiently. For more information, visit www.pasoybean.org