The Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) bears the primary responsibility for USDA’s overseas activities. These duties include:

• Developing markets for U.S. agricultural products around the world
• Representing American agriculture in international trade agreements and negotiations
• Collecting and analyzing agricultural statistics and other market intelligence around the world
• Operating export credit guarantee programs to help markets work
• Managing food aid programs where help is needed most
• Mobilizing expertise in developing nations for agriculturally led economic growth and food supply stability

Learn more about why exports and trade agreements are very important to U.S. agriculture.

FAS works to improve foreign market access for U.S. products through programs designed to build new markets and improve the competitive position of U.S. agriculture in the global marketplace. The agency also enhances U.S. agriculture's competitiveness by providing linkages to world resources and international organizations.

The major services of FAS -- market intelligence, access, and development; trade policy formulation and monitoring; food aid; and linkages -- will only gain in importance in the years ahead as U.S. agricultural exporters work to overcome international barriers and succeed in world markets.

Click on a link below to learn about part of FAS’s work and mission:

For more information about FAS, please contact FAS Public Affairs at (202) 720-7115 or at info@fas.usda.gov.