EXCLUSIVE — Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins voiced optimism following her meetings in the United Kingdom last week, but said that more must still be done to foster demand for American food products in British markets.
Rollins led a U.S. delegation to the U.K. last week, just days after President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced the framework for a new bilateral trade agreement following Trump’s announcement of steep new tariffs for American trading partners in April. U.K. officials are in Washington this week to continue those talks with Rollins and other administration officials.
The White House touted several components of the agreement as significant wins for American agriculture producers. The deal specifically includes a new, duty-free import quota for the U.K. of 13,000 metric tons per year of American beef and a promise to open a dialogue regarding sanitary standards for other imported food and agricultural goods.
U.K. officials had previously stated that changing standards for food imports, which particularly impact American chlorine-washed chicken and hormone-fed beef, were not on the table throughout trade talks with the U.S. The text of the new deal maintains that “imported food and agricultural goods must comply with the importing country’s sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards.”
Rollins told the Washington Examiner at the White House on Tuesday that both the federal government and private sector producers and exporters must improve their messaging to British consumers regarding the safety of American food products.
“There were a lot of questions, especially from the press, on the safety of our food, on the sanitation of our food. Lots of screaming of questions at me about chlorinated chicken, etc.,” she stated, noting that just 5% of American poultry is chlorine-washed. “I kept trying to solve for some of these myths while I was over there, which is why I did a lot of press.”
Rollins did say that producers and other private sector players should be a part of that messaging strategy, not just the federal government.
“Our farmers and ranchers have the best, most robust, safest supply of food the world has ever known, but we’re not good at telling our story,” she continued, adding that “building out that infrastructure to keep pushing that message out into the world is going to be very important, especially in the next two to three to four months, as all these trade deals come together.”
The USDA’s Foreign Market Development Program ran an operating budget of just over $27 million in fiscal 2024, but Trump’s latest budget blueprint proposed slashing its budget for FY26 by 18% as part of a larger 23% proposed cut to all non-defense spending.
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Rollins told the Washington Examiner on Tuesday that the USDA would continue FMD assistance amid the administration’s efforts to open up U.K. markets but stressed an “efficient” use of those funds.
“What we’ve got to do is make sure that those programs are efficient, that they’re spending taxpayer dollars wisely, and that we’re actually opening up markets,” she explained. “There is a lot of money currently in the system, and part of my job and our team’s job is to ensure we’re realigning that to [assist producers].”