AmCham’s Agriculture and Food Processing Committee members met with Acting Under Secretary/Deputy Under Secretary, Ms. Alexis Taylor, U.S. Department of Agriculture, on 19th October ahead of the Trade Policy Forum.

DUS Taylor was the third most senior level delegate from USDA to visit India within the last 11 months, having confirmed that the U.S. – India relationship in this sector is on a new pathway and headed in the right direction. DUS Taylor described the purpose of her visit and USDA’s overall objectives with India including leveraging the Trade Policy Forum for increased market access and empowering women in agriculture.

The members briefly explained their areas of business, why their company was in India and what was successful for them. They mentioned the challenges being faced, the need for path breaking technologies for increasing productivity and the slow growth of the food processing industry. Other challenges included the counterfeit chemicals and seeds that illustrated the need for stricter IP enforcement. The members requested USDA’s support for conveying to the GOI the need for sensitizing the government to IPR norms and holding up the sanctity of contracts. Support from USDA could help make a difference if this could be conveyed to the government during the G2G dialogues.