U.S. Identity Preserved Alliance continues global outreach with International Summit

The 2026 U.S. Identity Preserved International Summit went worldwide in March 2026, welcoming 160 participants from 18 countries to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

“The Summit is an opportunity to share ideas, explore innovations and strengthen partnerships that support transparency and trust throughout the identity preserved supply chain,” United States Identity Preserved Alliance Chair Bryan Severs said during his opening remarks. “Throughout the next two days, we hope you’ll gain new insights, build meaningful connections and leave motivated to advance identity preserved crops.”

Hosted by the U.S. Identity Preserved Alliance, the leading voice for the industry that delivers traceable, high-quality, variety-specific field crops to food markets across the globe, this year’s Summit was a catalyst for robust discussions and networking experiences centered around the identity preserved agriculture industry.

Setting the tone with Sunday night’s Welcome Reception, the Summit launched its programming the following morning with Chair Severs, who farms in Illinois, kicking off an agenda packed with industry experts, including U.S. Soybean Export Council CEO Jim Sutter; Jinhwa F.I. CEO Jin Yoon;  World Initiative for Soy in Human Health Program Manager Tate Jeffries; and Edil Vidal Torres, a food technologist and scientist at Northern Crops Institute. Insight from Paul Newnham, CEO of SDG2 Advocacy Hub, which advocates getting good food to everyone, everywhere, spotlighted the Hub’s “Beans is How” campaign aiming to double global bean and other pulse consumption by 2028 and the role identity preserved crops can play in the movement.

“Identity preservation is not just a technical system; it’s a promise,” Newnham said. “A promise that what was planted is what will be delivered. A promise of integrity from seed to shipment. A promise that trust can travel across oceans.”

That promise is what makes the U.S. Identity Preserved International Summit critical to U.S. Identity Preserved Alliance’s vision to promote and enhance value throughout the supply chain, from farmer to food business. All aspects of the supply chain were featured on the agenda, from identity preserved growers to researchers to exporters to international purchasers.

“Quality doesn’t cost, it pays back,” said Identity Preserved Crops Advisor Raquel Hansen, who farms in southern Minnesota, growing IP crops.

On the other end of the supply chain, international purchasers, Jin Yoon offered a unique insight into the conversations that selling IP affords him.

“Identity preserved crops are important for me because it gives my customers a choice,” Yoon said.

Other speakers included on the agenda were Matt Tripodi of Euromonitor; Hans Eisenbeis with The Non-GMO Project; buckwheat researcher Dr. Krysztof Dziedzic; and Shinsuke Yamada of Yamada Foods. The Summit also featured a U.S. IP growers panel, contracting and CME panel and transportation panel, generating productive discussions around topics essential to the industry. During his presentation, Tripodi shared that the total growth in Asia Pacific for food between 2025 and 2030 is $944 billion.

“There is no bigger opportunity in the world,” Tripodi said. “It’s happening right here. The reason why you’re here is to build the relationships to capture some of this growth and this growth is record setting. … Transparency is shifting from a differentiator to a requirement. … This is where identity preserved comes in.”

The identity preserved agriculture industry is gaining momentum, and the U.S. Identity Preserved Alliance will be along for the ride, helping to build, grow and sustain a reliable supply chain that ensures integrity of the end quality.

“It’s been exciting to see everyone come in from so many different countries and so many different backgrounds with very different uses of IP crops between companies,” U.S. Identity Preserved Alliance Executive Director Randy Duckworth said. “It was a great conference.”