MINNEAPOLIS -- As U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack talks trade in Vietnam and China this week, he's hoping to build on one of the few bright spots in the struggling American economy: ag exports.
U.S. agricultural exports are projected to reach a record $137 billion this year. The U.S. agricultural trade surplus is expected to top $42 billion. And new free trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama are expected to boost farm exports by another $2.3 billion, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The gains aren't limited to products such as corn, soybeans, rice, beef and pork. U.S. exports of dairy products, including powdered milk, cheese and butter, and nuts such as pecans, pistachios and almonds also have climbed in recent years.
Some of those crops are grown and processed in the Northern San Joaquin Valley.
The region grows about 30 percent of the world's almonds, and dairy products are the leading agricultural segment in Stanislaus and Merced counties. Wine, beef, tomato products and some poultry from the valley also are shipped to overseas markets.
Exports have played an important role in agriculture's ability to stay strong while the rest of the region's economy struggled during the recession and housing collapse, rife with foreclosures, business failures and high unemployment rates.
For example, Blue Diamond Growers just announced plans to build a new almond processing plant in Turlock. The 200,000-square-foot plant is scheduled to open in May 2013. It will occupy 88 acres in the Turlock Regional Industrial Park on the city's west side and eventually more than double in size.
Although it's not known how many jobs will be created in Turlock, Blue Diamond's 39-acre Salida operation employs 300 people — good news for Stanislaus County's 36,000 unemployed.
Vilsack gave several reasons why agricultural exports are doing so well: demand in China and other developing nations, the growing productivity of American farmers and ranchers, a positive perception of American ag products overseas, and aggressive marketing by farm groups and the USDA.
"As long as we continue to focus on those countries with these emerging middle classes, and focus on countries that are open to trade agreements, that open their markets as much as our markets are open, we're always going to do well," Vilsack said.
He pointed to the new trade deal with South Korea, which he says will boost U.S. farm exports by about $1.9 billion annually and may reopen discussions with China and Japan about reducing restrictions on U.S. beef imports, he said.
Exports have been a bright spot in the struggling U.S. economy, which is why the Obama administration has set a goal of doubling them in five years. Agriculture makes up about 9 percent of U.S. exports, compared with about 80 percent for manufacturing. Commerce Department data show farm exports grew much faster than manufacturing exports during the past decade — by 123 percent compared with 68 percent.
High farm product prices explain much of the increase in value for agriculture exports — products shipped overseas are worth much more today than they were 10 years ago. But the USDA also has done a "great job" of promoting ag exports, said Frank Vargo, vice president for international economic affairs at the National Association of Manufacturers.
Vargo, who spent three decades in trade policy positions at the Commerce Department, said he was always "admiring and jealous" of the USDA's export programs. The agency spends about double what the Commerce Department spends on export promotion, which is a big reason why one-third of U.S. farm products get shipped overseas, compared with only one-fifth of manufactured goods, he said.
Vilsack, who left for Vietnam on Monday, will be the first agriculture secretary to visit the country, which has jumped from the No. 50 to the No. 15 market for U.S. farm exports in the past decade. He said he hopes the Vietnamese see his visit as a sign of the importance the United States places on their relationship.
He'll then go to China, which has been the leading U.S. agricultural trade partner most of this year, supplanting Canada. He'll be part of the American delegation to an annual meeting on a broad range of trade issues, heading back to the United States next Tuesday.
The USDA credits agricultural exports with nibbling away at the U.S. trade deficit. The agency projects an agricultural trade surplus of a record $42.5 billion in 2011. By comparison, Commerce Department figures show the United States ran an overall trade deficit of about $500 billion last year.
RSS
E-Mail
Print
reprint or license
