Kentucky governor brimming with ideas for trade

'Trust our milk'

Bevin said he wants a Chinese dairy company to come to Kentucky to set up a production facility.

"We will make it possible for them to find the right location close to our dairy farmers. We will help them make the arrangements to buy the milk; they can turn it into powder here in Kentucky, they can put it on a ship here ... on one of our rivers and take it all the way to China," he said.

"China trusted Kentucky for our chicken. And for many years we have delivered a quality, consistent, good experience with our chicken. Now, I am asking Chinese consumers to trust us with milk. You trusted our chicken, now trust our milk products," he said.

Kentucky, known as the Bluegrass State, also is a big producer of beef and a major exporter of soybeans.

"We have high-quality food products in Kentucky, and again, the Chinese people know us, they know the quality of our food, but we can extend that. I want to bring other brands, the qualities of our dairy products and soybeans and other things that people need as well.

"And bourbon of course," Bevin added.

Kentucky, the birthplace of bourbon whiskey, produces 95 percent of the global supply. According to the Kentucky Distillers Association, bourbon is an $8.5 billion industry in the state, providing 17,500 jobs with an annual payroll of $800 million.

"Bourbon is becoming more and more popular outside of the US and Canada. It's becoming huge in Asia. ... So we would welcome opportunities to speak with folks about that also," the governor said.

Meanwhile, cooperation between China and Kentucky in the equine industry is increasing.

Raising horses in Kentucky is a major part of the state's agribusiness, including sectors involved in breeding and rearing, racing, buying and selling, and tourism.

"Kentucky has the best racehorses in the world. ... They win more races around the world than (horses from) anywhere else," he said.

According to a study by the University of Kentucky, the equine industry contributed $3 billion to the state economy in 2012 and generated 40,665 jobs.

At a dinner at US Ambassador to China Terry Branstad's residence, Bevin also met with a representative of the thoroughbred horse industry in China. They talked and agreed to have further conversations.

"We would like her and other representatives to visit, and we will show them the horse industry in Kentucky.

"I would like to have a stronger relationship. I think this is going to be concentrated more in Hainan province. I believe a lot of the horse industry is in that province. So we will be working on that possibility as well," he said.

Kentucky is home to arguably the world's best-known horse race, the Kentucky Derby, which is run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, and is one of three races that comprise the Triple Crown, the other two being the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes.

"The China Horse Club owned 25 percent of Justify, which won the (2018) Triple Crown. That's incredible. So there's going to be a lot of opportunity between China and Kentucky on horses," Bevin said.

He quoted a Chinese proverb: "The longest journey begins with a single step."

"It's very true. It's the same for these types of relationships - economic development relationships. This is a long journey, and we are taking one step at a time to a wonderful destination together," he said.