Title 7 — AgricultureRelease 119-73

§5234 Cooperator organizations

Title 7 › Chapter CHAPTER 83— - AGRICULTURAL COMPETITIVENESS AND TRADE › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER II— - AGRICULTURAL TRADE INITIATIVES › Part Part B— - Foreign Agricultural Service › § 5234

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Congress supports the foreign market development cooperator program and says it has been a very successful, cost‑effective way to grow U.S. farm exports. The Administrator and private groups should work together to expand the program going forward. The Secretary of Agriculture may give cooperator groups agricultural commodities owned by the Commodity Credit Corporation for projects that open markets for U.S. products. These commodities must be extra and cannot replace existing market‑development funding. The Secretary must prevent conflicts of interest and should set up a fair, consistent way to evaluate cooperator programs.

Full Legal Text

Title 7, §5234

Agriculture — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)It is the sense of Congress that the foreign market development cooperator program of the Service, and the activities of individual foreign market cooperator organizations, have been among the most successful and cost-effective means to expand United States agricultural exports. Congress affirms its support for the program and the activities of the cooperator organizations. The Administrator and the private sector should work together to ensure that the program, and the activities of cooperator organizations, are expanded in the future.

(b)The Secretary of Agriculture may make available to cooperator organizations agricultural commodities owned by the Commodity Credit Corporation, for use by such cooperators in projects designed to expand markets for United States agricultural commodities and products.

(c)Commodities made available to cooperator organizations under this section shall be in addition to, and not in lieu of, funds appropriated for market development activities of such cooperator organizations.

(d)The Secretary shall take appropriate action to prevent conflicts of interest among cooperator organizations participating in the cooperator program.

(e)It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary should establish a consistent, objective means for the evaluation of cooperator programs.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

7 U.S.C. § 5234

Title 7 — Agriculture

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73