India has decided to allow imports of US pork and its products into the country

Giving a thumbs-up to agricultural trade, India has decided to allow imports of US pork and its products into the country, Washington's Trade Representative Katherine Tai and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said on Monday.

The deal has come after around two decades of efforts to seek market access for US pork to India.

In a statement, Tai said, "India's agreement to allow US pork imports for the first time is great news for US producers and for Indian consumers."

The US has been trying to ensure the domestic pork industry could begin shipping products to India as soon as possible, said Vilsack.

The deal has come after around two decades of efforts to seek market access for US pork to India, Vilsack added.

The US was the world’s third-largest pork producer and second-largest exporter in 2020 as the global sales of the pork and its products were valued at $7.7 billion.

The US exported agricultural products worth over $1.6 billion to India in FY 2021.

In New Delhi last November, India and the US had agreed to expand trade of some agricultural products. The decision was taken at a revived US-India Trade Policy Forum. The agricultural products included US cherries, alfalfa and distiller dried grains as well as Indian grapes, mangoes, shrimp and water buffalo meat.