I would like to thank each witnesses for your participation in today's hearing as the Committee reviews the effectiveness of U.S. agricultural export programs.

Now more than ever, U.S. farm income is dependent on assuring continued access to foreign markets particularly since exports account for as much as one-third of U.S. domestic agricultural production.

Developing and sustaining these markets is also critical as they provide outlets for our domestic product and thousands of jobs in processing and transportation. Without question, the export market is the key to the future profitability of American agriculture.

We must also consider our global competition. The European Union maintains a 10 to 1 advantage over the United States in export dollars and is focused on seizing new market opportunities.

Just recently, the European Agriculture Commissioner stated that "American dominance of the Japanese food import market will start changing this year". Included in this statement was the announcement that the EU's agricultural export promotion to Japan will intensify over the coming months and years.

We must ask … how do we stay ahead of the curve? How do we maintain our current markets while expanding into new markets? Are there existing markets we should reevaluate? More importantly, how do we achieve these goals with limited government resources?

The easy part of the job is selling the product. U.S. product is the highest quality product in the world.

As many of you in the business know, U.S. product oftentimes commands a premium worldwide. Many will pay more for our product just because it is of U.S. quality. We are a relatively reliable supplier with good credentials. Overall, most countries believe we are a good business partner. The hard part is getting our foot in the door and keeping it there.

Again, thank you for your participation. I look forward to your testimony and appreciate your input as we search for the answer to these questions.