
Pictured: USDA FSA Administrator Daniel Whitley. Photo courtesy of USMEF.
The U.S. Meat Export Federation was a part of a USDA trade mission to Morocco earlier this month. USMEF Africa Representative Matt Copeland says Morocco is a promising market with a free trade agreement with the U.S. He says it could fuel momentum for U.S. red meat in a broader region of Africa.
“Countries like Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire are growing (up to) 7 seven percent year-on-year in terms
of GDP growth, and that offers a very big base in terms of population size and demand,” Copeland says. “And now for Morocco to participate in a free trade agreement with the United States, it allows for some interesting opportunities that haven’t been available to that region in the past.”
USMEF participation in the trade mission is made possible through USDA’s new Regional Agricultural Promotion Program or RAPP – funding that is helping red meat exports gain access to emerging markets. The trade delegation was led by USDA’s Foreign Agriculture Service Administrator Daniel Whitley. He notes the close cooperation with ag export organizations like USMEF.
“American taxpayers and USDA, they trust us with partnering with our industries like USMEF to help
market and promote U.S. agriculture products… and they have so many success stories,” he says. “We’ve seen record exports.”
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