Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack heads to Italy this week to attend the G20 Agriculture Ministers’ Meeting.
The Department of Agriculture says Vilsack will reaffirm the United States’ commitment to international engagement on agriculture and make the case for joint action on climate, food security, agricultural innovation, and closer global integration through trade.
The meeting seeks to build consensus around shared concerns ahead of the G20 Leaders’ Summit 2021, planned for late October in Rome.
The G20’s membership, which includes 19 countries and the European Union, represents 60 percent of the world’s population, 80 percent of global GDP and 75 percent of global exports.
Vilsack will deliver remarks at the G20 Open Forum on Sustainable Agriculture Thursday, along with planned personal meetings with counterparts from the European Union, Brazil, Italy and Spain.
During the meeting Saturday, Vilsack will deliver remarks focusing on the G20's contributions to the United Nations' upcoming Food Systems Summit and Climate Change Conference.