Secretary Vilsack has on numerous occasions emphasized the need for U.S. farmers to diversify from China, saying that the United States is overly reliant on the Chinese market. 

When asked about the trade negotiation with China and next steps from the Phase One Deal, Secretary Vilsack said:

The relationship with China is highly complex. In some cases, we are competitors, in some cases, cooperators. In some cases, we are seller and buyer and it’s a mercantile relationship.

In ag trade, it’s a trade relationship. But it can be impacted by national security issues, by something happening in the South China Sea, etc. All of that may play on China’s attitude about purchasing. And those are things the Department of Agriculture doesn’t have control over. What we attempt to do is make sure they know we value their market (and) let them know they can rely on the stability, safety and supply from our market.

Earlier on February 23, 2021, Secretary Vilsack said that China “seems to be living up to its responsibilities” concerning the purchases from U.S. farmers under the Phase One Trade deal given the impact of the pandemic, but later reversed the positive expectation during the 2021 virtual Commodity Classic conference.

At a March, 2021 digital conference, Secretary Vilsack said that China “needs” U.S. agricultural exports to feed their people after acknowledging the importance of the U.S.-China trading relationship to U.S. agriculture. 

When asked about how the U.S. should navigate the competition with China in 2016, Vilsack recognized China as “obviously our number one agricultural customer.” Advocating for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, however, he cautioned against ceding the Asian market to China. “The Trans-Pacific Partnership and rules like that allows the United States to have a stake, allows it to have a voice and allows it, most importantly, to lead, which is what I think the world expects us to do,” he said.