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U.S. Senator Charles
Grassley presents Diamond V President, John Bloomhall, with the
United States President’s "E Star" Award from the U.S.
Department of Commerce on August 23, 2000 for continued excellence in
exporting.
 "This
is the most prestigious and significant award in the United States for
excellence in international trade," explains Allen Patch,
Director of the Iowa Export Assistance Center, U.S. Department of
Commerce. "For a company to be selected to receive the award, it
must document aggressive growth in international trade, market
development, marketing efforts, and development of a dealer
network."
The panel found these
elements and more at Diamond V. "Upon recognizing the realities
of the global marketplace, we made successfully entering international
markets a priority," says John Bloomhall, President, Diamond V
Mills. "Thorough research led to a well devised business plan.
The skillful implementation of this plan and the export success it has
brought heavily reflect the skills and abilities of our talented
international team. Without these individuals, we probably would not
have realized our current level of success in export markets."
Diamond V Mills is the
world’s leading manufacturer and marketer of true, fully-fermented
yeast culture products. Its yeast culture products assist in
maintaining high levels of feedstuff digestibility by providing
valuable nutrients necessary for the performance of rumen microflora.
Microflora play a vital role in breaking down feedstuffs into
nutrients for use by ruminants.
Diamond V also is the only
company headquartered in Iowa to receive the President’s "E
Star" Award this year. "Less than two companies per state
receive the award each year," says Patch. "In the last 20
years, 18 or fewer companies from Iowa have been granted the
award."
In the last decade,
Diamond V export sales have more than doubled. Sales activities
focused first on Southeast Asia and Western Europe and now include
Mexico, and Central and South America.
Product modifications have
been made to support export sales. The introduction of Diamond V XP®
Yeast Culture, a concentrated product, helped lower freight costs.
Then, the lower starch content of XPLS Yeast Culture helped
reduce European import costs as import levies are applied to products
containing specific starch levels. Value-added products followed next
in which Diamond V XP was blended with various enzymes and/or minerals
to meet specific foreign market needs. Recently a "marker"
was added for use in markets where counterfeiting or copying is
common. The marker assures customers that they are truly feeding a
Diamond V product.
Packaging also was
modified to better serve export markets. Today, Diamond V yeast
culture products are available for export in one ton, one-half ton, 25
kilogram and 5 kilogram bags that are specially designed to withstand
the rigors of international shipment. Labels on the bags are
customized to the local languages and to the regulatory requirements
of each country.
Product promotion also is
tailored to specific market needs. Literature, for instance, now is
printed in up to ten languages including Japanese, Korean, Dutch,
Spanish, French, Portuguese, Italian, Arabic, Hebrew and Chinese.
Animal research, likewise,
reflects differences in market areas, climates, feed types and feeding
practices. From 1994 to 1998, for example, Diamond V either
exclusively sponsored or co-sponsored 27 university research trials
and more than 15 field trials in foreign markets.
Diamond V continues to
nurture its international distributors. Distributors and customers are
encouraged to visit the company’s facilities in Cedar Rapids.
Likewise, Diamond V brings international employees to Cedar Rapids for
training, and encourages overseas travel for face-to-face customer
contact.
As a benefit of earning
the President’s "E" Award in the 1990s and now earning the
coveted President’s "E Star" Award, Diamond V Mills has
the distinguished honors of flying the national award program’s
blue-and-white banner, displaying its certificate of commendation from
the Secretary of Commerce, providing employees with an "E"
lapel pin, and referring to these awards in its advertising.
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