Gov. Asa Hutchinson said Thursday that one focus of his trip to China would be to assure agricultural officials that Arkansas-produced poultry is safe.
China has banned poultry imports from the United States because of what it says are concerns about avian influenza, or bird flu. The disease was detected on only one commercial farm in Arkansas in 2015, state officials have said, but the disease forced the destruction of almost 8 million turkeys elsewhere in the United States.
"We want to be able to assure China of our bio-security," Hutchinson said. "That's a very specific message I want to convey to make sure their markets are open."
The governor said he would invite China's agricultural commissioner to visit Arkansas and see firsthand the bio-security measures in place on the state's poultry farms.
"It's world class," Hutchinson said. "They need to understand that."
He spoke to reporters after addressing the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce's 87th annual meeting in Little Rock.
Hutchinson leaves Sunday on a trade mission that will take him to Japan for three days and to China for five. He has said he'll be meeting representatives from more than 10 companies in hopes of enticing them to locate operations in Arkansas.
He said Thursday that he didn't expect to announce any deals immediately after his return. But he said it's important for the state's governor to knock on doors and tell foreign companies what Arkansas has to offer.
Hutchinson said there are 18 Japanese-owned businesses in Arkansas, which employ about 5,000 people.
The Arkansas Economic Development Commission said separately that there are four Chinese companies operating in Arkansas, but they have just 10 employees.
Hutchinson noted a Chinese company recently announced plans to build a plant in Tennessee.
China-based Wonderful Group said Nov. 3 that it would invest $150 million to build a ceramic tile facility in Lebanon, Tenn. Officials said the plant would create 220 jobs.
"As we see manufacturing return to the United States, Arkansas is in a perfect position to capitalize on that," Hutchinson said. "We want to plant seeds on this trip. We have some that we are more hopeful about than others."
Business on 11/13/2015