JAPANESE EXECUTIVES

JAPANESE EXECUTIVES. Members of the Japanese Flour Mill Association (JFMA) visited Ritzville on May 1 to meet with wheat officials. The three companies represented by the Japanese executives on the trip account for 65 percent of the milling market in Japan. The Japanese government purchases the wheat from the United States, and then flour mills come in and purchase the product. As part of a continuing relationship, the Japanese executives are the most recent to visit the U.S., while members of the Wheat Associates and grain commissions also travel to Japan. During their visit in Ritzville, the group talked about the supply and pricing of wheat, as well as discussing the politics between Japan President Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Donald Trump and what their role is to help with trade agreements. The Japanese executives traveled to Portland, Spokane, Washington State University and Ritzville, before continuing on to Washington, D.C., where they will meet at the U.S. Wheat Headquarters and also with USDA officials. The members participating in the discussion in Ritzville on Monday were back row (from left): Mike Poulson, Mike Miller, Dana Herron, Glen Squires, Joe Bippert and Michelle Hennings. Front row: Takeshi Koizumi, Kenji Takihara, Junji Kokuryo, Masaaki Kadota, Wataru “Charlie” Utsunomiya and Brian Gordon. -Journal photo by Katelin Davidson