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Going overseas on a foreign trade mission is not something that is only reserved for presidents and cabinet members; it can also happen at the state level.

Sen. Steve Sodders, D-State Center, recently embarked on a trade mission to Taipei, Taiwan. The main purpose of the mission was to look into the possibility of opening an Iowa trade office there.

"It went really well for what we are trying to do," he said. "If we have this office, we'll have someone on the ground which will help us open up other markets throughout Asia, as this is truly an international trade center."

The Taiwan government is seeking to open up the trade and is reaching out to Iowa, Sodders said. The government there is willing to subsidize the office for five years.

The first two years, the Taiwanese will pay 75 percent of the expenditures for the office, followed by 60 percent in the third year and 50 percent the two years after that.

Having a trade office in such a key location could help local producers as well, Sodders said.

Due to some misconceptions in the past, there have been bans on both hogs and cattle to various locations in Europe. The most recent example is with hogs from the United States being banned due to the H1N1 virus, which was stuck with the unfortunate name "swine flu."

"The people we were dealing with understand that H1N1 is not contracted by consuming hog meat," Sodders said.

Sodders went with four other legislators to Taiwan for the mission and stayed less than a week, spending most of that time in various meetings.

While the Taiwanese government will fund the lion's share of the costs the first five years, Sodders noted it will still require a financial commitment from the state of Iowa as the office will cost approximately $200,000 per year to run.

"I am now talking with various organizations in our area about participating in a public-private partnership to finance Iowa's portion of the trade office project," Sodders said. "I'm excited about Iowa's opportunities for economic growth and look forward to pursuing this and other projects to keep our state moving forward."

Sodders also was able to experience high-speed rail while in Taiwan, which he said was very impressive. Overall, he said he took a lot from the trip, which was paid for entirely by the Taiwanese government.

"On a personal note, I'll remember the friendliness of all the people we met," he said. "They were so helpful."

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Contact Ken Black at 641-753-6611 or kblack@timesrepublican.com