ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The American Soybean Associations’s World Initiative for Soy in Human Health (WISHH) Program and the Northern Crops Institute (NCI) have risen to the challenges of COVID-19 travel restrictions, with the support of state soybean organizations.

According to Liz Hare, the program’s executive director, COVID-19 has elevated the importance of finding new ways to deliver nutritious sources of protein to developing and emerging economies in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

To date, Hare said the program has delivered soy protein food, feed, and trade virtual training to participants from 12 countries where the program works.

“Global trends make (the program)’s work more valuable than ever to both U.S. soybean growers and the entrepreneurs, and institutions we work with to innovate with soy protein in foods and beverages,” she said, “as well as livestock, poultry, and fish feeds.”

The 12 countries are: Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal (aquaculture entrepreneurs received training on feed manufacturing with full-fat soy); Uganda (food companies received training on baking with soy flour); Panama, the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and Costa Rica (new ideas for soy-based foods and snack foods); and Cambodia (feed millers received training on full fat soybean meal).

Founded by U.S. soybean growers in 2000, the program’s current mission is to develop agricultural value chains in emerging markets, creating trade and long-term demand for U.S. soy, said Karen Edwards, WISHH’s program senior advisor.

“Since 2008, (the program) has utilized a variety of funds to send developing country entrepreneurs to (the institute) for training that cover a variety of topics, such as how to add soy flour to breads, to tofu production, to risk management in buying soybeans,” she said.

Mark Jirik, NCI director, said the program and the institute both receive soybean checkoff support from the Minnesota Soybean Research and Promotion Council, the North Dakota Soybean Council and the South Dakota Soybean Research & Promotion Council.

He said the Michigan Soybean Committee also supported the program and the institute’s joint training for Latin American food and beverage companies.

“Northern Crops Institute’s team had to convert our face-to-face training courses and materials into webinars, videos, updated manuals and more so we could deliver knowledge about soy protein to (the program)’s entrepreneurs in their home countries,” he said. “The trainees’ responses to surveys show that they gained new solutions that can help them progress until in-person training at the Northern Crops Institute is once again an option.”

An example is the program and the institute hosted a two-day November webinar for a trade team of the program’s new food and beverage industry key accounts from Panama, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and Costa Rica.

A record 81 people registered for the training that the program organized by leveraging support from state soybean checkoff organizations, with USDA Market Access Program funding.

The program also included the Latin American company representatives who are participating in the program’s United Soybean Board-funded initiative that mentors entrepreneurs.

In addition, the participating food engineers and dieticians explored new ideas for soy-based foods and snack foods. Participants got front row seats to a pilot lab manufacturing soy-based “vegan nuggets,” participated in five Michigan soybean farm e-tours and had live interactions with four U.S. suppliers. 

Examples of the trends that are driving demand for the program and the institute’s trainings include:

Trade access during COVID-19 is critical and is repeatedly emphasized by global leaders. Production, marketing, and distribution is an essential service everywhere to keep trade corridors open and ensure the continuous functioning of the critical aspects of food systems in all countries.

According to the World Plant-based Protein Industry Report 2020-2025, the global plant-based protein market size is projected to grow from $10.3 billion in 2020 to $14.5 billion by 2025. The food segment is projected to dominate the plant-based protein market throughout the forecast period.

Edwards said program staff also connected strategic partners with each other so they could share best practices on how to pivot their businesses during COVID-19.

“We also worked through Microsoft Teams to supervise a video company in Ghana to create this mini-documentary about how a program strategic partner company is dealing with COVID-19, requiring him to refocus his business, and how the program is helping,” she said.

In addition, the NCI supports regional agriculture and value-added processing by conducting educational and technical programs that expand and maintain domestic and international markets for northern-grown crops.

“The World Initiative for Soy in Human Health and the Northern Crops Institute are currently preparing a virtual risk management training for feed millers, importers and brokers from Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Burma and Africa,” she said.