The California Walnut Commission participated in a recent U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) trade mission to the United Kingdom, led by Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins. The mission focused on exploring opportunities for expanding American agricultural exports and advancing discussions on a potential U.S.-U.K. trade agreement.

The proposed agreement aims to reduce tariffs, eliminate trade barriers, and increase market access for U.S. agricultural products. According to projections, the agreement could represent a $5 billion opportunity for American agricultural exports.

Representatives from the California Walnut Commission, including Jack Mariani, CEO of Mariani Nut Company, and Robert Verloop, Executive Director and CEO of the Commission, took part in a roundtable discussion at the U.S. Embassy in London. The discussion included other U.S. commodity groups and trade representatives, including Peter Meadows and Ian Forbes of The Garden, and addressed how USDA trade promotion programs, such as the Market Access Program (MAP), can support exports to the U.K.

According to Mariani, the session provided an opportunity to emphasize the U.K. as a key market for California walnuts and to share how MAP funding has been used to support trade and consumer marketing programs in the region. The U.K. is currently among the top 10 export markets for California walnuts.

During the trade mission, Secretary Rollins highlighted several U.S. agricultural products on her social media channels, including California walnuts, as part of a broader effort to promote American specialty crops abroad.

Verloop expressed the Commission’s interest in continuing to work with USDA officials to enhance global market access and competitiveness for California walnuts.

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