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| **Background****EEO Policy****FOIA Requests****Job Opportunities****Organizational        Chart****Sin Nombre****Strategic Plan****USDA Directory****USDA        Non-         discrimination        Policy**Importance of Exports to AgricultureAs we look at world markets        today, strong exports are underpinning gains in U.S. farm receipts and incomes in most        agricultural production categories. It would be virtually impossible to overemphasize the        importance of exports to the prosperity of U.S. agriculture. For fiscal year 1997, U.S.        exports reached $57.3 billion -- second only to the record $59.8 billion achieved just the        year before.We can all be proud of this success, and we are working        to build on it to help the U.S. agricultural industry face the challenges of today and        tomorrow. I believe that new trade achievements can be traced to two factors: the        adaptability of U.S. export strategies, and the range of programs and services devoted to        export development efforts. We are strengthening our efforts to educate agricultural        producers and processors across the country about the potential benefits of exporting, and        help them to take those crucial first steps in developing foreign markets. And given the        constantly changing nature of the world export arena, the years ahead will undoubtedly        present us with many challenges that will tax our innovation and resourcefulness in using        our export strategies, programs, and services to preserve and expand markets for U.S.        agricultural products.We in FAS are making the shifts needed to keep pace with        changes in the marketplace, trade issues, and resource availabilities. We will continue        to:- pinpoint constraints to U.S. exports;
- work to remove trade barriers and change trade-distorting            practices;
- safeguard U.S. agricultural interests by advocating U.S.            policies in the international community;
- help producers, processors, and exporters to strengthen            their export knowledge and skills;
- ensure that U.S. farmers and our research community have            timely and complete intelligence about emerging export markets; 
- inform foreign buyers about the fine qualities and reliable            quantities offered by U.S. agricultural producers, and educate them about how to locate            U.S. products; and
- use USDA export assistance programs such as the cooperator            program and the Market Access Program (MAP) to the maximum extent reasonable to pursue            export opportunities.
Tapping the markets of the future will take a continuing        search for new ideas and new techniques to beat the competition in a market crowded with        skillful, determined nations, many of which must export to survive. The information you        can find through our FAS Homepage can help in that effort. We are entering a new kind of global economy. Long-closed        markets are opening, tariffs are coming down, sanitary and phytosanitary barriers to U.S.        products are being steadily rolled back. In responding to global growth in trade, U.S.        producers have some major advantages in quality, efficiency, and production capacity. The United States has been in the agricultural export        market for centuries. Our agricultural economy has flourished in large part because of        that market, and we look to foreign markets for future growth. Foreign market development        is an investment in a better balance of payments; an investment in job growth and a strong        economy; and an investment in the viability of rural America and an efficient farm and        food system. It’s an investment in our country’s future.*Last modified: Friday, January 29, 1999* |