Overseas Trade Invaluable to Louisiana Farm Products

By Don Molino

During his daily report on the Voice of Louisiana Agriculture Radio Network, Louisiana Commissioner of Agriculture and Forestry Dr. Mike Strain pointed out 20% of the volume of all products grown here in the United States, about 30% of the value of all that crop production is sold outside the United States.

“So when you talk about trade negotiations, they’re real and they are critical,” said Strain.

“We have 7500 jobs created for every billion dollars in trade,” Strain continued, “and when you look at overall agricultural trade, it reaches between $135 and 145 billion this year, with a positive balance of trade of over $20 billion.”

Strain pointed out there are some 100 trade agreements worldwide and the US in now in about 20 of those.

“We must be heavily involved in trade negotiations to make sure that agriculture and rural America is well represented,” Strain said.

“When you look at the price of US commodities, a great deal of that price is based on our ability to sell them as well as other factors, like the value of the US dollar,” according to Strain.