Now through Thursday, USDA officials are in Taiwan.  A group of 49 U.S. business and farm organizations will be on an Ag trade mission in Taiwan trying to drum up more Ag and food and sales.  Taiwan is already in the top 10 of U.S. food and ag product customers coming in at #9 last year buying at just under $4 billion worth of products, an 18% increase from the year before.

 

Ken Isley runs the USDA's foreign agricultural service.  He's leading the U.S. mission to Taiwan and he said American producers already have 39% of the food and ag market there but there's plenty of opportunity for growth.

 

He noted one out of six U.S. Ag trade missions last year produced significant new sales and that just reinforces, “the value of this outreach activity and the great partnership we continue to have with the us ag industry and our state and with our cooperator organizations.”

 

Isley said this week's trip is the first of seven Ag trade missions planned for this year.

 

 

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