USDA Foreign Agriculture Service Administrator Daniel Whitley says buyers in the Philippines find the U.S. to be a reliable supplier.

The comments came after a three-day mission connecting U.S. growers, food producers and exporters with buyers in the Philippines.

“They view American agriculture to be the most reliable in the world … they want our world-class agriculture and food products,” he said during a teleconference July 22.

Consumers in the Philippines regard U.S. products as safe and of good quality, he said.

The Philippines is the eighth-largest market for U.S. agricultural exports, averaging $3.1 billion annually over the last five years.

“There’s a lot of potential to do a lot better,” he said.

Indeed, those exports totaled nearly $3.6 billion in 2021, and FAS expects them to grow to $3.8 billion this year.

It really was “fantastic” to connect with U.S. stakeholder and buyers, he said.

The trade delegation included representatives from 29 U.S. agribusinesses and farm organizations and 10 state agriculture departments.

The mission included market briefings, site visits and about 500 business-to-business meetings. A big highlight was a tour of a soybean meal and feed facility using U.S. soybeans and soymeal, he said.

“It was great to see American products being showcased,” he said.

The Philippines is the largest buyer of U.S. soybean meal, and it wants to expand those purchases to increase production of meat to meet consumer needs.

He said they were very interested in importing more U.S. soybean meal, corn, pork products and dairy, some of their top U.S. imports, and lowered tariffs on those products through the end of the year.

The U.S. delegates asked about making open markets permanent by lowering tariffs. Participants also talked about how ethanol can help address climate change and sustainability, he said.

“Hopefully, we’ll see some of that come to fruition,” he said.

Inflation is also causing Philippine officials to look at policy on free and fair trade, he said.

“Hopefully that will benefit American agriculture in the short- and long-run,” he said.

Participants also attended the signing of two memorandums of understanding to share U.S. information, expertise and technical assistance on ethanol and African swine fever.

The U.S. ethanol industry has done substantial research on ethanol and how different blends function in different climates and under different conditions. The U.S. is telling the Philippine government it’s more than welcome to look at U.S. research and is willing to share that technical assistance, so the country doesn’t have to start from scratch, he said.

The country wants to increase ethanol in the vehicle fleet, and it  wants to learn from U.S. efforts, research and expertise, he said.

As for African swine fever, the MOU will address biosecurity and best management practices to control ASF. The University of Minnesota and National Pork Producer Council are involved in that effort. The university is a leader in research on animal disease issues, detection and management, he said.

The Philippine industry wants to highlight the steps the U.S. has taken in animal disease risk management and policy, he said.

Soybean meal — $945.9 million

Wheat — $870.7 million

Dairy – $436.9 million

Pork & pork products – $204.3 million

Poultry meat & products — $147.0 million

All agricultural exports — $3.6 billion