trade agreement

USDA Emphasizing Trade Expansion

Dan Exports/Imports, Industry News Release, Trade

usdaTed McKinney, the new USDA Undersecretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs, has been busy since being sworn in. He’s visited India, Brazil, Colombia, and Panama recently with the goal of increasing trade opportunities.

Capital Press Dot Com says the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is putting a new emphasis on generating more trade opportunities overseas for American agriculture.

Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue recently said his goal is to have McKinney become a member of the “million-mile club.”

McKinney spoke from a recent trip to Panama City, saying the goal is to remind trade partners that “we’re open for business, including both exports and imports.” The four countries he’s taken trips to are not the biggest U.S. trading partners but the goal is to “leave no stone unturned” when it comes to generating more business for agriculture.

The U.S. signed free-trade agreements with Colombia and Panama in 2012 and trade has flourished since then. The intention of these trips is also to grow trade both ways, with McKinney saying the U.S. benefits from imports too, especially of products the country doesn’t produce itself.

From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting News Service.