More than 95% of the world’s consumers live outside the United States. The growth opportunities are endless for U.S. agriculture. But it’s necessary to understand the value of international trade and how more Americans can take advantage of it, according to the founding members of the newly launched Agriculture Trade Education Council.

Agriculture leaders from across major food and ag associations announced the formation of the ATEC, a 501 c (3) non-profit that will be a resource for education on the value of agricultural trade policies, practices and structures.

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Key ag leaders shared with the Department of Transportation that the most problematic supply chain issues for the ag industry include transportation costs, labor availability, rising energy costs and challenges with obtaining inputs and products for the ag sector.

In response to President Joe Biden’s Feb. 24, 2021, Executive Order on America’s Supply Chains, key participants in the agricultural industry detailed in two letters the key concerns for an industry impacted on multiple levels, one signed by the Ag CEO Council of the 17 top ag groups as well as another written on behalf of the Agricultural Transportation Working Group

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Bloomberg News reported this week that, “Chinese authorities are imposing new hurdles for fertilizer exporters amid growing concerns over surging power prices and food production, a move that could worsen a global price shock and food inflation.

“Some Chinese fertilizer cargoes ready to be shipped are being held up by local authorities for additional checks or to obtain new export certificates, according to people familiar with the matter. The supplies will either end up being sold on the domestic market or face delays in being exported, said the people, who asked not to be named as they are not authorized to speak on the matter

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The current shipping crisis has been an ongoing fiasco for well over a year and it continues to get worse. Shipping containers to load soybeans and other commodities have been elusive, especially for many ag shippers, as containers were returned to China empty. Railroad yards have been backlogged with containers for months.

Perhaps the most stunning image of this entire mess is full container ships anchored off the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, waiting to berth and unload their precious cargo. Terminals are packed full of both loaded import containers and empty containers waiting to be loaded onto vessels or with export goods.

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While the U.S. continues to maintain being the primary trading partner with Central American and Caribbean neighbors, heightened Chinese economic engagement with those neighbors concerns several Congressional members. Over a dozen representatives sent a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai asking for immediate attention to the growing influence of the Chinese Communist Party in both Latin America and the Caribbean trade and economic development.

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Financial Times writers Demetri Sevastopulo and Ryan McMorrow reported on Thursday that, “Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping have agreed to hold a virtual summit this year, in the first sign of improving relations between the countries since the US president took office.

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In its monthly Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook report last week, USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) stated that, “In July, U.S. beef exports totaled 297 million pounds, exceeding last July’s exports by 17.9 percent or 45 million pounds.

The rise in part reflects large shipments of U.S. beef to China, the largest U.S. beef exports to China, ever recorded, totaling almost 45 million pounds more than the previous year.

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China's wheat imports hit the highest level in more than two decades. The country is accounting for 19% of global wheat consumption right now.

According to China's customs data, the U.S. supplied 3 million metric tons of wheat imports during the last marketing year, which equates to a 28% share.

Before the 2010/2011 marketing year, the country's typical wheat imports totaled 1 million metric tons or less.
Recently, that amount bumped up to an average of 3.5 million metric tons in most years.

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More than 70 agricultural associations called on President Joe Biden to address ocean carrier practices that are causing increased costs and delays for American businesses. In addition, support continues to swell for a bipartisan House bill to address many of the problems contributing to the port crisis impacting agricultural exports.

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