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Bangladesh has received its first consignment of corn from the United States since 2018.
The process of unloading the shipment started at 11:20 am on Wednesday at a jetty on the Karnaphuli River in Chattogram, near the Chittagong Port Authority’s water transport licensing office.
An event marking the occasion was attended by Erin Covert, agricultural attaché at the US Embassy in Dhaka.
The shipment comprises 57,855 tonnes of corn produced in the US states of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota.
Speaking at the event, Covert described the day as historic and said the shipment reflected efforts to strengthen agricultural trade ties between the two countries.
While the volume may seem modest, annual exports are expected to rise to around 2 million tonnes, she added.
In a statement, the US Embassy said the shipment was sent from the Port of Vancouver in Washington state, adding that it would provide Bangladesh’s animal feed producers with a reliable source of high-quality corn.
The corn was exported by United Grain Corporation, one of the largest grain exporters in the United States.
In Bangladesh, the shipment was imported by three animal feed producers: Nahar Agro Group, Paragon Group, and Nourish Poultry and Hatchery Limited.
The consignment arrived near Kutubdia on Dec 31 aboard the vessel MV Beltokio and was later transported to destinations including Chattogram, Narayanganj and Noapara using smaller vessels.
About 2,500 tonnes were being unloaded from one such vessel on Wednesday.
Rakibur Rahman Tutul, managing director of Nahar Agro, said the imports would help meet domestic demand, noting that local production accounts for about 30 percent of Bangladesh’s corn needs.
He said shipments from the US typically take around 45 to 46 days to arrive and are priced competitively with imports from Brazil, at about $246 per tonne.
Bangladesh previously sourced most of its imported corn from India and Brazil, but importers say improving trade relations with the United States have made American corn a viable alternative.
Representatives of the other importing companies were also present at the event.