(NAFB.com) – Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack released the next steps in the Department’s efforts to bolster U.S. ag trade, including the agency’s planned trade missions for 2024. Ag exports totaled a record $196 billion in 2022 following a record-setting year in 2021. USDA plans to build on recent successes and highlight export opportunities in additional markets through a robust agribusiness trade mission schedule next year. USDA will lead trade missions to several markets, including Seoul, Korea; New Delhi, India; Vancouver, Canada; Bogota, Colombia; Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam; and Casablanca, Morocco. In addition, Vilsack announced a public comment period for the new Regional Agricultural Promotion Program. Combined, these efforts will help support further growth in U.S. agricultural exports and introduce high-quality U.S. agricultural products to new markets. “Market diversification is an important tool for maximizing growth opportunities for U.S. agriculture, as well as hedging the risk of market contraction,” Vilsack says.