USDA announced last week it is introducing the Regional Agricultural Promotion Program (RAPP) to support continued growth of U.S. agricultural exports and to also introduce U.S. agricultural products to new markets.
The agency will invest $1.3 billion to support that market diversification effort within a public-private partnership with the agricultural sector, according to Alexis Taylor, USDA Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Under Secretary.
Specifically, Taylor told AgriTalk Host, Chip Flory, that RAPP will provide assistance to eligible organizations that conduct market promotion activities, including ones to address existing or potential non-tariff barriers to trade.
Headway In India
Taylor told Flory the Biden administration has tallied numerous trade policy wins in 2023. Some of the key recent wins, she referenced, have been in India, which has been difficult to access with U.S. agricultural goods.
“They have what they would say are 800 million small-holder farmers. Imagine that – more than twice our population in the whole United States,” she said. “They increasingly are looking to develop an industrialized (society) and determine how they move away from subsistence farming to a better economic model. As they’re trying to wrap their arms around how to make that move, using tariffs has been one of the ways they’ve protected their farmers.”
Taylor said USDA has worked closely with India to reduce tariffs and has secured nine tariff reductions in 2023. To date, the agency reports India has dropped retaliatory tariffs on apples, chickpeas, lentils, almonds and walnuts. The Indian government also has reduced tariffs for turkey, duck, blueberries and cranberries.
Steady Progress Cited
Four additional export market successes Taylor and USDA cite as having achieved this year include:
1. Canada approving legislative recognition of U.S. biofuels, maintaining the largest and most dependable export market for U.S. ethanol and biodiesel;
2. Japan renegotiating beef safeguard levels under the U.S.-Japan Trade Agreement, reducing tariffs and generating growth opportunities for $150 million in beef exports;
3. Brazil agreeing not to change import certification requirements, ensuring continued exports of U.S. milk, beef, and seafood; and
4. Mexico granting market access to U.S. potatoes following more than 20 years of engagement.
Looking ahead, Taylor told Flory one of USDA’s key objectives will be increasing the export of U.S. agricultural foods and products to countries in Africa.
“By 2051, one in four people on the planet will live on the African continent, and we cannot ignore this any longer,” she said. “We’re really hopeful that the (RAPP) program will provide some resources for our food and ag sector to be able to invest in some of these areas of the world.”
Taylor’s conversation with Flory, which took place during the annual National Association of Farm Broadcasters Trade Talk program in Kansas City, is available to listen to here:
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