Don't fix what's not broken, three grain organizations said in a statement sent to USDA this week. The National Grain and Feed Association, North American Export Grain Association, and the Grain Elevator and Processing Society say that the existing U.S. grain standards for soybeans serve the market well and should not be changed.
The statement came in response to a request for comments from USDA's Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration as part of the review it conducts on grain standards every five years.
The grain groups say the existing U.S. soybean standards allow the market "to be both efficient and responsive to individual customers, without forcing all other customers to pay premiums for specifications that they neither need nor want."
"A tightening of the (foreign material limits) would force the commercial market to establish stricter commercial grading practices to meet such standards across the board, and competitive marketing margins likely would reflect the additional risk the buyer faces in meeting the tighter definitions," the groups say. "Virtually all customers indicate they do not want to pay more for lower foreign material (limits)."
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