U.S. Department of Agriculture

1. U.S. Department of Agriculture The Foreign Agricultural Service

2. Who We Are

3. Who We Are • FAS’s global mission is to maintain and expand export opportunities for U.S. food and agriculture sector, as well as provide food aid and technical assistance to foreign countries • Staff includes about 850 people in Washington, DC, and in 97 overseas offices covering more than 154 countries worldwide

4. What We Do

5. What We Do • Market Access • Trade Development • Resolve Sanitary-Phytosanitary (SPS) Issues and Technical Barriers to Trade • Trade-Related Technical Assistance • Market Intelligence

6. Market Access Gain and Maintain Access • By monitoring and enforcing trade agreements Expand Access • Through bilateral, regional, and multilateral trade negotiations that lower tariffs and reduce trade impediments

7. Trade Development By Partnering With Private Sector • Market Access Program (MAP) • Foreign Market Dev. Program (FMD) • GSM-102 Export Credit Guarantee Program and Facility Guarantee Program • Technical Assistance for Specialty Crops Program (TASC) • Quality Samples Program (QSP) • Emerging Markets Program (EMP)

8. Resolve Sanitary and Phytosanitary Issues and Technical Barriers To Trade • Monitor and enforce international sanitary/phytosanitary and technical barriers to trade rules • Participate in development and adoption of international standards • Work with developing countries to improve their regulatory frameworks, improving access for U.S. agricultural exports

9. Technical Assistance • Administer food assistance programs • Provide technical assistance to developing countries to help them become better trading partners and achieve economic growth • Support agricultural reconstruction efforts in post-conflict and post-disaster countries

10. Market Intelligence • Provide information on international production, consumption, and trade, so that exporters/importers can make informed trade decisions • Report on changes in other countries’ policies that affect U.S. agricultural exports and opportunities

11. How We Do It

12. By Operating Eight Program Areas Overseas Offices

13. Why We Do It

14. Why We Do It • Because it supports President Obama’s commitment to work along the side of people of poor nations to “make their farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds.”

15. Why We Do It • Because the Obama Administration is committed to a permanent solution for food insecurity.

16. Why We Do It • In addition to feeding the hungry, USDA has built long-term capacity building and development aspects into all of its food assistance programs, making them well-suited to help stabilize emerging economies and rejuvenate failed and weakened states.

17. Why We Do It • Because the “middle class” outside the United States is expected to double by 2020, increasing demand for U.S. agricultural exports Foreign households w/real PPP incomes greater than $20,000/year (in millions of households) Developing countries Developed countries Source: Global Insight’s Global Consumer Markets data as analyzed by OGA/FAS/USDA

18. Why We Do It • Because U.S. agricultural productivity is increasing about 1.6 percent per year, while U.S. demand is increasing only about 1 percent per year • Because U.S. agriculture is twice as reliant on trade as the overall U.S. economy

19. Why We Do It • Because farm exports support nearly 1 million American jobs • Every $1 billion in exports creates about 10,000 jobs U.S. Jobs Supported by Agricultural Exports

20. Why We Do It • Because U.S. agricultural exports, which reached a record $115.5 billion in 2008, generated an additional $161.5 billion in supporting business activities • Because high-value products generate even more additional economic activity - $1.40 for every $1.00 exported

21. Thank you! FAS website: http://www.fas.usda.gov