On May 5, USDA Undersecretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Alexis M. Taylor and her Filipino counterpart Undersecretary Mercedita Sombilla organized a high-level Food Security Dialogue in Washington, DC with the participation of the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The dialogue addressed global food security issues and climate change through promoting bilateral partnership between the U.S. and Philippines.
The meeting highlighted the importance of research and development in reducing food security, advancing veterinary sciences to minimize sanitary and phytosanitary issues as well as technical barriers to trade. Undersecretary Taylor also detailed plans to bridge the knowledge gap between two countries and boost the Philippine’s food security resilience in the face of a changing climate.
As the U.S. Department of Commerce co-sponsors an AgriTech trade mission to the Philippines with an emphasis on digital transformation in agriculture later this year, the US private sector can seize this opportunity to introduce new technology and sustainable agrichemicals to Filipino farming businesses.
The US ongoing projects in the Philippines also offer companies opportunities to enhance trade with the Philippines since the USAID aims to lower tariffs on Filipino agricultural products, raise Filipino food safety standards, and facilitate the Philippines’ participation in the global value chains.
Moreover, US companies can invest in multiple biology and agriculture research projects in partnership with institutions and universities in the Philippines to develop innovations and modern technologies to yield higher productivity.
As the agriculture sector gains more attention in the US-Philippines relations, US companies can also expect more cooperation on boosting climate resilience for agricultural sustainability via the USDA’s Sustainable Productivity Growth Coalition, Agriculture Innovation Mission (AIM) for Climate, and the Global Methane Pledge.
