Leaders from five state departments of agriculture and 26 US agribusinesses and organizations are accompanying Agriculture Deputy Secretary Krysta Harden on a mission to sub-Saharan Africa this week, to expand export opportunities for US food and agricultural products in that market.

“Sub-Saharan Africa’s strong economic outlook, growing middle class, and surging demand for consumer-oriented foods creates a promising market for US food and agricultural products,” Harden says. “Over the past decade, US agricultural exports to this region increased by more than 50 percent, totaling $2.3 billion in 2014.”

According to USDA, the mission includes 22 US companies and four US agricultural commodity trade associations representing a variety of agricultural products including grains and feeds, peanuts, soybeans, meat and poultry products, agricultural machinery and more. The group will meet with potential customers from more than a dozen countries across Sub-Saharan Africa to learn about the market conditions and business environment in the region.

According to USDA, top Sub-Saharan Africa markets for US agricultural and related products last year included Nigeria ($847 million), Angola ($298 million) South Africa ($259 million), Ghana ($129 million), Kenya ($69 million) and Ethiopia ($83 million).

US companies participating in the trade mission include:

1. Agribusiness United Inc., Savannah, GA

2. Arkansas World Trade Center, Rogers, AR

3. Case New Holland Industrial, Washington, DC

4. Food Export Association of the Midwest USA, Springfield, IL

5. GEMCO, New York, NY

6. Grain Handler, Inc., Lakeville, MN

7. Hakan USA, Broadway, VA

8. Kaivalya, LLC, Lanham, MD

9. Kiwi International, Roswell, GA

10. Klausner Trading, Inc., Myrtle Beach, SC

11. Lamex, Bloomington, MN

12. LT International Trading Company, Wilmington, NC

13. Meat Team, Ltd., Los Angeles, CA

14. Mountaire Farms Inc., Millsboro, DE

15. Premium Peanut, LLC, Douglas, GA

16. Pristina Capital Partners, Midland Park, NJ

17. Suma Trading LLC, Swedesboro, NJ

18. TRC Trading Corporation, Roseville, CA

19. Tysons Foods, Inc., Springdale, AR

20. United Source One, Belcamp, MD

21. Virginia Natural Beef, Inc., Lexington, VA

22. Zafi Beverages, Bensenville, IL

USDA cooperators participating in the mission are:

1. American Soybean Association, St. Louis, MO.

2. USA Poultry & Egg Export Council, Stone Mountain, GA.

3. U.S. Meat Export Federation, Denver, CO.

4. USA Rice Federation, Arlington, VA.