Dive Brief:

• Agriculture leaders from the U.S. and China met last week in a revival of a trade collaboration committee that had remained on hold for nearly nine years.
• U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said he discussed "outstanding market access issues" and other concerns at a meeting in Washington last Thursday with China Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Tang Renjian.
• The discussion, which came a day before the USDA confirmed sales of 297,000 metric tons of soybeans to China, was the first meeting of the Joint Committee on Cooperation in Agriculture since 2015. The committee was created in 2003 to coordinate trade collaboration between the U.S. and China.

Dive Insight:

U.S. talks with China are the latest sign the two countries are beginning to slowly chip away at trade tensions that have upended farm export markets for years.

China made a series of large soybean purchases from the U.S. last fall, including sales in October that were marked by the first formal signing ceremony since 2017. In November, the U.S. had official representation for the first time at China's International Import Expo in Shanghai, where buyers signed agreements for more American soybeans.

“I look forward to further exchanges and cooperation as we continue to forge a relationship that expands and improves market access opportunities for U.S. farmers and ranchers in China, an important agricultural export market," Vilsack said in a statement.

China is expected to remain the largest agricultural market for the U.S., according to the USDA's trade forecast for fiscal 2024. Despite the large purchases, U.S. exports to China have slowed in recent months as the world's largest agricultural buyer steps up purchases from Brazil.

In addition to market access, Vilsack said he discussed climate change and food security challenges, emphasizing the importance of an "enabling environment for innovative technologies and practices to ensure productive and sustainable agriculture systems.”