U.S. ag exports forecast to reach $140 billion in 2013

   In its Outlook for U.S. Agricultural Trade released Thursday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture forecasts that agricultural exports will reach $140 billion in fiscal year 2013.
   If realized, this will be a new record for U.S. agriculture exports, USDA said.
   “We’re counting on Congress to help keep up this momentum. With just a few weeks left before expiration of many Farm Bill programs – including trade promotion programs that return $35 in economic benefits for every dollar invested – producers and rural communities need passage of a comprehensive Food, Farm and Jobs Bill as soon as possible,” said U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in a statement. “This would enable USDA to continue trade promotion, and carry out a wide variety of additional efforts to support a productive U.S. agriculture sector.”
   Vilsack also said the country’s farmers and ranchers need a reliable and stable agricultural workforce to keep up production. “Passage of the commonsense immigration reform measure, which was already approved by a bipartisan majority in the U.S. Senate, would further strengthen American agriculture and help put our nation on solid footing to maintain strong exports in the years to come,” he explained.
   In addition, he said USDA will “continue breaking down barriers to U.S. products and working toward new agreements to expand exports, including a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the European Union and a Trans-Pacific Partnership with Asian nations.”