Federal Aquaculture Marketing Services

United States Department of Agriculture

Agricultural Marketing Service

The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture provides assistance to aquaculture through several programs including:

The Federal-State Marketing Improvement Program (FSMIP). This program seeks to improve the marketing of aquaculture commodities and to reduce marketing costs for the benefit of producers and consumers. Projects include work on innovative marketing techniques, testing study findings in the marketplace and developing State expertise to improve service to marketers of aquacultural products. FSMIP is a matching funds program exclusively available on a competitive basis through State Departments of Agriculture or other State agencies, who must submit proposals directly to the program administrators.

Livestock and Seed Program (LSP). This program is responsible for purchasing meat and fish products in order to stabilize market conditions and furnish nutritious food to meet the needs of the Department's domestic feeding programs. Under certain excess food supply conditions, aquaculture products may qualify for this program.

Transportation and Marketing Division (TMD). This division of the AMS conducts research on the market opportunities for aquaculture products. This research helps determine the economic feasibility of developing an aquaculture program based on the potential opportunities for marketing the product. This work applies to those planning new production and marketing organizations.

The mission of the Rural Business-Cooperative Service is "to enhance the quality of life for rural Americans by providing leadership in building competitive businesses including sustainable cooperatives that can prosper in the global marketplace." We meet these goals by: investing financial resources and providing technical assistance to businesses and cooperatives located in rural communities; establishing strategic alliances and partnerships that leverage public, private, and cooperative resources to create jobs and stimulate rural economic activity.

Foreign Agricultural Service

The Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) serves U.S. agriculture's international interests by expanding export opportunities for U.S. agricultural, fish, and forest products and promoting world food security. The FAS administers several programs beneficial to the United States aquaculture industry including:

The Trade Assistance and Promotion Office (TAPO) serves as the first point of contact for persons who need information on foreign markets for agricultural products or assistance in accessing government programs. TAPO can: 1)Provide country and commodity specific Foreign Market Information Reports which focus on best market prospects, and contain contact information on distributors and importers; 2) Put you in touch with several low-cost services that help U.S. exporters make direct contact with foreign buyers such as the Trade Leads, Foreign Buyer Lists, and Buyer Alert programs; 3) Provide basic export counseling, and direct you to the appropriate USDA offices to answer your specific technical questions on exporting; 4) Connect exporters with the appropriate export programs operated by the FAS such as the Export Enhancement Program, the Market Promotion Program, or our credit guarantee programs; 5) Help in getting information on export-related programs managed by other Federal agencies, such as the Export-Import Bank, the Department of Commerce and the Small Business Administration.

Foreign Market Research This contains country and commodity information for individuals or companies who plan to export their agricultural products: These include: 1) Country Reports- Search through the reports prepared by FAS attaches covering nearly 130 countries. Search by keyword, including country and commodity;2) Trade Leads- Sales opportunities abroad for food, farm and forest products are provided to U.S. exporters by the Foreign Agricultural Service's 75 overseas offices. You can search trade leads by keyword, date, commodity, or country; 3) World Market and Trade Circulars- Monthly reports provides a unique overview of U.S. agricultural exports, as well as specialized coverage of timely trade topics. Each issue contains a summary of current trade statistics and the latest trade policy and marketing developments, along with in-depth analysis of country markets and specific consumer food product exports; 4) Market Specific Reports- Detailed information on marketing certain products in specific countries are contained in these reports; 5) Foreign Buyers Lists- The offers information on more than 20,000 foreign buyers of food, natural fiber, and wood products in 80 countries. Foreign Buyer Lists provide important information on each firm such as contact person, address, telephone, FAX, and type of product(s) imported. PLEASE NOTE !! These lists are available for distribution only in the United States.; 6) Export Programs - FAS provides a number of programs to help U.S. exporters of agricultural products:

The Emerging Markets Program was originally authorized in the Food, Agriculture, Conservation and Trade Act of 1990 and amended by the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 (the FAIR Act). The Bill authorizes a program to promote agricultural exports to emerging markets through the sharing of U.S. agricultural expertise by providing technical assistance. The Act authorizes $10 million annually for 7 years for agricultural technical assistance to "develop, maintain, or expand markets for United States agricultural exports" in emerging markets, to improve the effectiveness of food and rural business systems in emerging markets, including potential reductions in trade barriers, and to increase prospects for U.S. trade and investment in these countries. The Program encompasses all geographic regions and uses funds and facilities of the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC).

The Export Enhancement Program (EEP) helps products produced by U.S. farmers meet competition from subsidizing countries, especially the European Union. Under the program, the U.S. Department of Agriculture pays cash to exporters as bonuses, allowing them to sell U.S. agricultural products in targeted countries at prices below the exporter's costs of acquiring them. Major objectives of the program are to expand U.S. agricultural exports and to challenge unfair trade practices.

The Commodity Credit Corporation's (CCC) Facility Guarantee Program (FGP) provides payment guarantees to facilitate the financing of manufactured goods and services exported from the United States to improve or establish agriculture-related facilities in emerging markets. By supporting such facilities, the FGP is designed to enhance sales of U.S. agricultural commodities and products to emerging markets where the demand for such commodities and products may be constricted due to inadequate storage, processing, or handling capabilities for such products.

The goal of the Foreign Market Development Program (FMD) Program, also known as the cooperator program, is administered by the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The goal of the program is to develop, maintain, and expand long-term export markets for U.S. agricultural products.

The Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC), U.S. Department of Agriculture, administers Export Credit Guarantee Programs for commercial financing of U.S. agricultural exports. The programs encourage exports to buyers in countries where credit is necessary to maintain or increase U.S. sales, but where financing may not be available without CCC guarantees. The Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) administers export credit guarantee programs for commercial financing of U.S. agricultural exports to encourage exports to buyers in countries where credit is necessary to maintain or increase U.S. sales.

Under the Supplier Credit Guarantee Program (SCGP), the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) guarantees a portion of payments due from importers under short-term financing (up to 180 days) that exporters have extended directly to the importers for the purchase of U.S. agricultural commodities and products.

The Market Access Program (MAP), formerly the Market Promotion Program, uses funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) to help U.S. producers, exporters, private companies, and other trade organizations finance promotional activities for U.S. agricultural products. The MAP encourages the development, maintenance, and expansion of commercial export markets for agricultural commodities. Activities financed include consumer promotions, market research, technical assistance, and trade servicing.

The Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC), U.S. Department of Agriculture, administers export credit guarantee programs for commercial financing of U.S. agricultural exports. The programs encourage exports to buyers in countries where credit is necessary to maintain or increase U.S. sales, but where financing may not be available without CCC guarantees. Under the Supplier Credit Guarantee Program (SCGP), CCC guarantees a portion of payments due from importers under short-term financing (up to 180 days) that exporters have extended directly to the importers for the purchase of U.S. agricultural commodities and products. These direct credits must be secured by promissory notes signed by the importers.

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