By Godson Umejiego, Bureau Chief, The Americas
The US Department of Agriculture has announced it is awarding US$8.3 million in funding to help 11 US recipients address trade barriers and expand international market access for US specialty crops.
The funding is provided through USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service, which manages the Technical Assistance for Specialty Crops (TASC) programme. TASC helps US specialty crop producers combat trade barriers, as well as promote and sell their goods internationally.
“Our market development programs are bringing the bounty of American agriculture to people around the world, helping millions of hardworking American farmers, ranchers, and producers connect their safe, high-quality products with growing export markets,” said Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Under Secretary Luke J. Lindberg. “Not only does TASC provide the tools they need to overcome technical obstacles, it also chips away at the nearly US$50 billion Biden-era agricultural trade deficit which has held back rural America for far too long.”
Through TASC and similar programmes, USDA partners with non-profit US agricultural trade associations, farmer cooperatives, non-profit state-regional trade groups, state agencies, and small businesses to expand market access and conduct overseas marketing and promotional activities on behalf of US agricultural producers and processors.
The USDA market development programmes return an estimated US$24.50 for every dollar invested.
The TASC programme makes US$9 million available annually to fund projects that address sanitary, phytosanitary, and technical barriers that prohibit or threaten the export of US specialty crops.
