|                                                                                                                                                             |  | NEW  MOSCOW  OFFICE SUPPORTS  U.S.  FOOD  EXPORTS                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     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|**BISNISHome PageSearchBISNISEmbassyReportsCountryReportsIndustryReportsPublicationsSourcesof FinanceLeadsand EventsExchangeRatesState ExportsOtherSources** |  | April 1998by Joan Morgan & Robert WalkerAgricultural products worth $1.3 billion mostly processed foods led U.S. exports to Russia in
1997, accounting for 40 percent of total U.S. exports.  To promote continued and expanded
agricultural exports to Russia, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has established a
new "Agricultural Trade Office" (ATO) at the American Embassy in Moscow.  The office
provides services both to American and Russian companies seeking to sell U.S. food products in
Russia.Russia has been one of the fastest growing markets for U.S. agricultural exports, which led
USDA to establish the new office.  Of the $1.3 billion in U.S. agricultural exports to Russia last
year, more than 90 percent were processed or consumer-oriented food products.  Meat, primarily
poultry, was the largest single category of U.S. exports to Russia in 1997, and Russia is U.S.
poultry producers' largest export market.  U.S. agricultural exports declined in 1997 by about 9
percent, following two years of very strong growth.  Despite a modest fall in chicken sales, U.S.
shipments of fish and seafood, processed fruits and vegetables, and finished forestry products all
showed significant growth.The pattern of U.S. agricultural exports to Russia has changed dramatically since 1992. 
Processed, consumer-oriented agricultural products worth $1.1 billion nearly 10 times their
1992 amount now account for 40 percent of U.S. exports to Russia.  Bulk agricultural
commodities (primarily cereals), which accounted for 35 percent of U.S. exports in 1992, were
less than 1 percent of exports in 1997.  The Russian Government's 1992 decision to abandon
Soviet-era grain import subsidies led to steep, permanent declines in U.S. exports of cereal grains
in 1993 and 1994.To support the growth of this dynamic market, the ATO provides a variety of market reports to
U.S. food exporters and their Russian customers.  These reports can be obtained from the Ag
Export Services office of the USDA's Foreign Agriculture Service (FAS) in Washington, DC
(see contact information below).  As an additional service, the ATO is developing an Internet
home page to provide timely information on its programs and services, as well as to give useful
information on trade issues and current market opportunities.Services for U.S. Exporters
U.S. companies may obtain the information services described in this article free of charge by
contacting Ag Export Services.  Trade leads can also be accessed from the FAS home page
(www.fas.usda.gov).Trade Leads   FAS overseas offices send detailed product inquiries from foreign buyers to
Washington, D.C. for distribution to U.S. exporters.  These leads are time-sensitive inquiries from
Russian companies seeking a particular U.S. agricultural, food or beverage product.Buyer Alert   The "Buyer Alert for U.S. Agricultural Products," is issued every two to four
weeks, and lists specific products offered by U.S. exporters.  Buyer Alert is supplied at no cost to
interested Russian importers of food, beverages, and other agricultural products.  To receive a
copy of Buyer Alert, a Russian company should contact the FAS, which has offices in Moscow,
St. Petersburg, and Vladivostok.U.S. Supplier Listings   The FAS Moscow office can provide Russian importers, upon request,
with addresses of U.S. suppliers of specific American products or commodities.  A U.S. company
can be included on such lists by contacting the Ag Export Services Offices.Lists of Russian Importers   The ATO regularly receives  inquiries from U.S. companies for potential
importers of agricultural goods.  These companies are provided with a list of Russian importers organized by
product.  This list can be obtained from the FAS offices in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Vladivostok.Market Promotion & Information
To promote the sales, image, and awareness of U.S. agricultural products, FAS Moscow also offers the following
services:HomePage   A home page now being developed will provide information on FAS Moscow programs and
operations, as well as other useful trade and export-related information.  There will be "hot keys" to connect U.S.
companies with key USDA and FAS information.Lists of Key Food and Equipment Trade Events   The ATO provides free information on key food and
equipment shows in Russia and in the United States to interested American exporters and Russian importers.  It
also coordinates U.S. pavilions at food shows in Russia, and organizes and recruits Russian buyer groups to attend
selected U.S. food and agriculture trade shows.U.S. Export Credit Guarantee Programs   The U.S. Department of Agriculture export credit guarantee
programs help make financing available on a commercial basis for imports of U.S. food and agricultural
products.  The GSM-102 Program is currently available for Russian importers and more than 30 Russian banks
are eligible to participate in this program. For more information about the USDA Agricultural Trade Office,
contact its Director, Robert L. Walker, at 011 7 (095) 956-4103 (voice), (095) 255-9951 (fax), or by e-mail at
[email protected].  To contact the Ag Export Services Office, call 202-720-6343 (voice) or 202-690-4374
(fax).Joan Morgan covers agriculture for BISNIS. Robert Walker is Director of the USDA Agriculture Trade Office
in Moscow.This report is provided courtesy of the Business Information Service for the Newly Independent States
(BISNIS)