Multiple agriculture industry leaders from the United States have recently emphasized the importance of cooperation with China, anticipating that strengthened bilateral ties in agriculture will benefit global trade and sustainable development.

They shared their views at the U.S.-China Agricultural Trade Cooperation Forum, held as part of the ongoing seventh China International Import Expo (CIIE), which runs from Nov. 5 to 10.

Long-standing partnership

For Jim Sutter, CEO of the U.S. Soybean Export Council, the international marketing arm of U.S. Soy, China is a key trading partner and the relationship with China is "critically important."

"U.S. Soy and many other commodity groups here have long-term collaboration relationships with China," Sutter said, noting that in the case of U.S. Soy, China has been a partner for 42 years.

"We appreciate China's leadership in opening up and promoting trade," he said. "Trade is critically important for all of our agricultural commodities. And we're happy to have a country like China, recognizing that and talking about the importance of it at a forum like the CIIE which is all about trade."

The world's first national-level expo focused on imports, the CIIE has featured a section dedicated to U.S. food and agriculture companies since last year, aiming to help them explore the Chinese market.

This year, the section attracted 14 participants. Impressively, within just the first hour of its operation, the total turnover hit 600 million U.S. dollars, according to data from the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai (AmCham Shanghai).

"China is our largest and most important market," said Allisa Lau, China Director of Cotton Council International, a non-profit trade association that promotes U.S. cotton fiber and products, while speaking of the long-standing China-U.S. ties in the cotton industry.

The Chinese and American cotton industries have maintained very close cooperation over the years, and this is not only because of their interdependence but also their mutually beneficial and supportive relationship, Lau said.

Toward sustainable future

At the forum, many speakers shared similar views that despite the changing global landscape, China-U.S. agricultural cooperation remains beneficial for both countries to shift toward a more sustainable development path.

Janna Fritz, Vice-Chair of the U.S. Soybean Export Council, described the strong China-U.S. relationship in the soybean industry as a "beacon of hope and strength" for global agriculture. The mutually beneficial ties have influenced agricultural practices and lifestyles in both countries, she said.

China's growing demand for sustainable, high-quality crops has set a high standard for soy purchases in terms of both quality and sustainability, Fritz said. She added that U.S. soy farmers "understand that mission" and will continue to help China meet its ambitious sustainability goals.

Also eyeing the huge cooperation potential, Steve Reinhard, Chair of the United Soybean Board, said that China has entered a stage of high-quality development as it strives to meet the people's increasing need for high-standard products.

"Our commitment to sustainability could serve as a new productive force for Chinese partners to help with China's high-quality development," Reinhard said.

To facilitate this growing partnership, the CIIE has set an example for connecting U.S. agriculture firms with long-term Chinese partners. According to AmCham Shanghai, U.S. companies continued to land orders even after their participation in the expo last year, and the cumulative turnover from these orders has now reached 3 billion dollars.

At the opening ceremony of this year's expo, Chinese Premier Li Qiang reaffirmed the country's commitment to "turning its enormous market into global opportunities." He said in the keynote speech that the country has fully implemented all the opening-up measures announced at the previous six CIIEs, and will continue to expand market access to more sectors.

Ryan LeGrand, president and CEO for the U.S. Grains Council, said that trade in agriculture is a "bright spot" in a complicated relationship between the U.S. and China.

"I think it's entirely possible that our ideological differences may set a ceiling in our relations, the trade sets a floor in our relations," LeGrand said, noting that agricultural trade, in particular, helps "set that floor and maintain that foundation."

"When trade works, the world wins. And I think that certainly applies in the U.S.-China relationship," he said.