A Crookston area farm hosted the US Dry Bean Council WorldwideReverse Trade Mission of 2024 on Tuesday afternoon. The Trade Mission started its Farms and Facilities tours in Buxton, ND, Tuesday morning, and just after 12 noon, two buses carrying passengers from all over the world pulled up on Eric Samuelson’s Farm.
You could tell the excitement was building beforehand as Brent Epema from B & E Meats of Crookston was busy grilling burgers and brats, and a half dozen FFA students were on hand to serve lunch. The FFA students were happy to be helping out today. “We are serving the US Dry Bean Council, and we are helping the 2024 Worldwide Reverse Trade Mission, so people from all over the world are going to be here,” said one of the students.
The host of the lunch was farmer Eric Samuelson of rural Crookston. “We are hosting the US Dry Bean Council 2024 WorldwideReverse Trade Mission, which in essence is, we are hosting a group of foreign edible bean buyers, and today is their Northern Valley Crop Tour,” said Samuelson. “I’m currently on the Board of Directors for the North Harvest Dry Bean Growers Association; I represent the North and West side of Minnesota, so part of our group is hosting this tour.”
Having this Trade Mission gives foreign buyers a chance to visit where their beans are grown and interact with the dealers here, which can increase the export market.
Danny Raulerson, the Executive Director of the Dry Bean Council, and Mitch Coulter, the Executive Director of the North Harvest Bean Grower Association for ND/MN, were in attendance. “So, the US Dry Bean Council has a Worldwide Reverse Trade Mission that rotates every year to different regions of the US and this year is North Dakota and Minnesota,” said Coulter.
The Dry Bean Council participates in a grant program the USDA Foreign Ag Service provides that helps pay for the Worldwide Reverse Trade Mission.
The group was set to visit a Bean Processor in East Grand Fork on Tuesday afternoon, return to Fargo for the evening, and then head out for another tour day on Wednesday.
