
See For Yourself 2025
U.S Soybean farmers are in Honduras and Guatemala to get an inside look at the value of the soy checkoff.
Seeing is believing. That’s why USB is giving a group of U.S. soybean farmers an inside look at the customers, facilities and opportunities that their checkoff dollars make possible. During this mission, Feb. 1-9, to Honduras and Guatemala, farmers will meet with customers and visit ports, crush facilities and aquaculture farms. Each day, a farmer will provide a boots-on-the-ground look at how checkoff investments build demand for U.S. Soy internationally. Read more in the blog posts below from our See for Yourself participants.
2/2 | Honduras
Part 1
I’m Jonathan Griffel, a sixth-generation family farmer from Illinois. I grow corn, soybeans, and wheat, and have a beef cattle herd. I really wanted to take part in the See for Yourself program because a lot of the time, farming can feel very local and very small, but the crops we grow, especially soybeans, are sent all over the world. It’s interesting to see how the crops we produce in the U.S. affect other economies and food systems. It’s been very interesting to see how that works and how the rest of the world is involved in food production.
We visited USSEC’s Soy Excellence Center at Zamorano University. They’re doing some terrific work in countries like Honduras and Guatemala. Through education and outreach programs, they’ve helped grow the agricultural markets in these regions. The more education that we have in countries like Guatemala, the more we can really kind of foster and grow those because people have that awareness of the value of U.S. soybean products.
The Soy Excellence Center has done terrific work developing in Latin America and Caribbean markets and over 40 countries. They’ve sent over 30,000 students and educated them. We talked about the advantages of U.S.-grown soybeans over competitor soybeans. It is something that regions around the world really value.
The thing that really surprised me was about aquaculture because a protein-rich diet is needed, and U.S. soybeans can really make a difference. It’s interesting to see the growth in these other countries from soybean crush and meal into other food byproducts for feeding poultry and feeding other animals. It really adds value and a return on investment for local operations.
To hear more, click here to see Jonathan’s interview.
Be sure to follow along here to read more about what the next group of farmer participants experience during the See for Yourself mission.
2/3 | Honduras
Part 1
I’m April Bowar, my husband and I grow corn and soybeans in South Dakota. We’re heading to Guatemala, but our time in Honduras has been good. We went to Zamorano University to learn more about USSEC’s Soy Excellence Center and what it does for farmers back home. It was eye-opening to learn where our grain goes after we take it to the elevator and how different organizations within the U.S. work in Honduras and Central America to promote U.S. Soy.
U.S. soybean quality is much higher than that of a lot of other soy because it’s clean, high in protein, and goes through less processing. Sustainability is another important factor for our customers. We practice strip-tilling on our farm, which allows our crop to emerge quicker and helps retain moisture in our soil. Farmers are passionate about sustainability, maintaining resources for future generations, and meeting consumer needs.
I enjoy learning how U.S. Soy makes a difference for our farmers, and the See for Yourself program makes those opportunities possible. It’s one thing to plant the seed and watch it grow, but it’s interesting to see the back end of it, where it goes after you take it to the terminal, and how it affects people around the world. It’s also been great meeting with customers and buyers of U.S. Soy as well as gaining a better understanding of what U.S. Meat Export Federation, USA Poultry and Egg Export Council and U.S. Soybean Export Council do.
Part 2
Good morning. My name is Elizabeth Pfaff. I am from East Central Indiana. We arrived in Guatemala on Monday night. We started off our morning early at the Alimentos food processing plant. They import 6,000 tons of U.S. Soy, which they utilize in their products to provide higher protein to their consumers. One important thing I learned is that they drastically decreased the amount of people diagnosed with anemia in Guatemala and improved overall health by using soy protein in their products.
The biggest thing I’ve learned on this trip so far is the importance of sustainability and quality. U.S. Soy provides just that: sustainable, high-quality soy, and quality matters when you’re talking about human consumption.
The See for Yourself mission has put things into perspective. You hear about global markets when you market your grain on your farm, but being here in person allows me to truly grasp what global markets look like and what impacts them. This mission has opened my eyes to all the work done by different organizations to strengthen long-term strategic partnerships with the folks directly buying U.S. Soy.
Be sure to follow along here to read more about the next group of farmer participants’ experience during the See for Yourself mission.
2/4 | Guatemala
Part 1
My name is Andrew Armstrong. My family and I grow corn, soybeans, and wheat in Ohio. We recently visited Terminal de Granos del Pacifico, one of the largest grain ports in Guatemala on the Pacific Coast. The port handles about 50 million bushels a year, which equates to about 80% of the country’s human food and livestock feed consumption.
During our time in Guatemala, we focused on U.S. soybean exports. I noticed a lot of construction on the roads, which suggests that they’re trying to improve their efficiency in handling their imports, which are our exports.
Attending the See for Yourself mission has allowed me to see a small fraction of what’s happening in the global market that directly affects the domestic market. I know what my checkoff dollars do on a surface level when our soybeans leave the truck, but I wanted to know more. I want to be an informed consumer, and we want the same for our consumers. As farmers, we need to do our best to do that.
To hear more, click here to see Andrew’s interview.
Part 2
My name is Cody Clift, and I’m a Kentucky soybean farmer. It’s day four of the See for Yourself mission, and we’re in Guatemala, focusing on U.S. soybean exports. We visited Comayma, a feed manufacturer specializing in multiple species of livestock nutrition, that buys soybeans and soybean meal from the United States.
The international market is important for U.S. farmers to sell their products. Animal agriculture is our No. 1 customer, with 97% of soybean meal bought by animal producers. Comayma is a large buyer of soybean meal that feeds animals, which feeds people.
The See for Yourself mission has provided an excellent opportunity to see different people and places and how our products help them daily. When farmers dump our soybeans at the local elevator, they’re loaded on a train, truck or barge. Most of the time, it’s on a barge going down the Mississippi River and exported to places like Guatemala. The more places we can sell, the more options we have to make money and feed the world.
To hear more, click here to see Cody’s interview. Be sure to follow along here to read more about the next group of farmer participants’ experience during the See for Yourself mission.
2/5 | Guatemala
Hey, I’m Luke Bellar, and I farm in Southeast Kansas. The See for Yourself program has introduced U.S. farmers like me to different areas of the world, so we can see where our products go after they leave our coastlines.
Today, we attended a conference with the USA Poultry and Egg Export Council, followed by visits to local markets and a Walmart in Guatemala City. While visiting these locations, we noticed a wide variety of fresh meats at the local markets and a large selection of U.S.-exported processed frozen foods at Walmart.
Every U.S. soybean farmer’s top customer is animal agriculture. Ninety-seven percent of all soybean meal is fed to chickens, turkeys, pigs, fish, and other livestock, both domestically and internationally. The poultry industry plays an important role, as chickens consume more than half of the soybeans processed for livestock feed.
It was nice to see products labeled “Sustainable U.S. Soy.” This confirms to U.S. farmers that the high-quality, sustainable soybeans and soybean meal we export help feed and fuel the world.
To hear more, click here to see Luke’s interview.
2/6 | Guatemala
My name is Cale Buhr, and I grow corn, soybeans, and seed corn with my dad and my brother in South Central Nebraska. This is my first time in both Honduras and Guatemala. Central America isn’t exactly a huge market for soybeans in Nebraska. It’s been great getting to know the other participants and learning how infrastructure plays a role in how they get their soybeans to the end market. Many of them utilize the river, whereas in Nebraska, soybeans are primarily exported via rail and delivered to key markets in China, the Philippines, Vietnam and some smaller countries in Southeast Asia. From 2017 to 2020 I spent most of my time at the Nebraska Soybean Board doing market development and working with some of the checkoff’s partner organizations, similar to what we’re learning on the See for Yourself mission.
Today, we attended the World Initiative for Soy in Human Health’s (WISHH) Food Security Dialogue reception in Antigua, Guatemala, and met with Guatemala‘s Minister of Agriculture Maynor Estrada. We learned about partnerships the soy checkoff has in Honduras and Guatemala with WISHH, the USA Poultry and Egg Export Council (USAPEEC), the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), and the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC). These organizations work to fill the gap between emerging markets, industry contacts and emerging countries where U.S. soy needs to have a presence.
I joined the See for Yourself mission to become a walking testimonial for the soy checkoff and share my experience with farmers back home who aren’t fully aware of what the checkoff does. Not only that, but now I can highlight different checkoff partnerships and how they maximize the money we pay into the checkoff with certain investments. This mission aims to develop the next generation of farmer leaders, and someday, I hope to put my name in the ring to be on the United Soybean Board.
To hear more, click here to see Cale’s interview.
Part 2
My name is Landon Moore, and I’m from North Carolina. I farm about 1,800 acres, equally split between corn and soybeans. I participated in the See for Yourself program to further my knowledge of where my crops go after they leave the field. I’ve always realized that research and other activities were happening elsewhere, but I never had all the details. It’s been eye-opening to see some of the work that has been done around the world.
During our mission to Central America, we witnessed many different end uses for soy, including soy foods, infrastructure and feed mills. Grupo Cresta in Guatemala imports soybean meal from the United States. They produce about 1.1 million eggs per day. About 60% of soybean production is sold to the export market, underscoring our exports’ importance. Seeing the agriculture program at Zamorano University in Honduras and learning about infrastructure challenges at the Terminal de Granos del Pacifico in Guatemala was interesting. I’ve also enjoyed meeting people from various industries and hearing their concerns and appreciation for the soybeans we produce in the States. U.S. farmers provide a good protein source for developing countries in need of quality protein for their citizens and a food source worldwide.
To hear more, click here to see Landon’s interview. Be sure to follow along here to read more about the next group of farmer participants’ experience during the See for Yourself mission.
2/7 | Guatemala
2/8 | Guatemala