Current Initiatives

 

The Ohio Soybean Council and the soybean checkoff are leading the way in helping Ohio soybean producers to explore opportunities and overcome challenges related to transportation and logistics. 

OSC has hosted several industry forums on transportation/logistics topics, engaging the entire Ohio soybean industry value chain in this effort.  OSC also has conducted a study of Ohio agricultural logistics, which identified competitive advantages for Ohio producers.

In Ohio, OSC is collaborating with partners form the private and public sectors to capitalize on Ohio's transportation/logistics advantages.

  • Norfolk Southern has opened a new intermodal facility at Rickenbacker in Columbus, OH, and is building the Heartland Corridor rail network to allow for more efficient shipping by rail from Ohio to ports on the East Coast.

 

  • CSX is constructing a new intermodal facility in North Baltimore, OH, and is building the National Gateway rail network that also will allow for more efficient shipping from Ohio to ports to the East Coast.

 

  • The Ohio Jobs Plan, passed by the Ohio General Assembly and signed by Ohio Governor Strickland in 2008, contains $100 million for new distribution and logistics infrastructure projects.

 

  • OSC was a participant in the Ohio Department of Transportation's "Ohio 21st Century Transportation Priorities Task Force" - a statewide effort to develop a vision for a more effective freight and passenger transportation/logistics system in Ohio.

 

  • OSC is building transportation/logistics partnerships with other agricultural companies and organizations, and with government agencies such as the Ohio Department of Agriculture, Ohio Department of Development and the Ohio Department of Transportation.

 

Soy Transportation Coalition


At a national level, OSC supports and participates in the Soy Transportation Coalition (STC). 

STC was formed in 2007 by the American Soybean Association, United Soybean Board and the state soybean boards of Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota.  The National Grain and Feed Association and the National Oilseed Processors Association also participate in the STC.

The main purpose of STC is to work on behalf of the U.S. soybean industry to identify national-level opportunities and challenges related to transportation and logistics, and to make sure that the future U.S. transportation system is effective and reliable for soybean farmers.