Visiting United States Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said Monday the USDA will provide $8.5 million in disaster aid for the victims of the recent typhoons in the Philippines.

The $8.5-million assistance is under the USDA Food for Progress Program, wherein food is expected to be provided to an estimated 438,000 people for two months.

The USDA assistance includes some 7,000 metric tons of US rice and 680 metric tons of non-fat dry milk, which will be processed to Ultra High Temperature milk and biscuits to be distributed to the flood victims.

“The United States understands the importance of international assistance in the aftermath of disasters like typhoons that recently hit the Philippines,” Vilsack said.

“The food aid will help the people in most need of assistance, and as a longstanding friend and partner of the Philippines, the United States stands ready to continue our cooperation and assistance in the future,” he added.

The Philippines is the largest recipient of USDA food aid programs in Asia. This year alone, USDA signed three Food for Progress agreements with the Philippines amounting to $25 million.

It will be recalled that the US was the first international donor of the Philippines following the destruction caused by tropical storm “Ondoy” in Metro Manila and other nearby areas. It has likewise provided equipment, humanitarian supplies, and manpower to assist in the rescue and relief operations in typhoon-stricken areas.

Vilsack also expressed the US government’s strong commitment to further fostering strong ties with the Philippines in the area of agricultural trade.

“We at USDA are very committed to continue this trade effort [through] bilateral agreements, breaking trade barriers and multilateral agreements. We are committed as this administration is committed to trade,” he said.

Vilsack is here in the country for a four-day US Trade and Investment Mission (TIM), the US Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s first in Southeast Asia.

He said stronger trade relations between the US and the Philippines will not only make an impact on both countries but will also create economic opportunities that will impact the farmers.

On the part of the US, Vilsack said the US government is interested in trading vegetables abundantly grown in the US but are not being grown in the Philippines. On the part of the Philippines, among the trade areas being worked on are the exportation of Philippine bananas and banana products to the US.

Meanwhile, Malacañang on Monday said the visit of Vilsack could promote the Philippines as an investment niche for American businessmen amid concerns of some business groups about rampant corruption in the country.

Vilsack on Monday morning met with President Arroyo at Malacañang’s Music Room where he announced the US donation of roughly 7,000 metric tons of rice and 680 metric tons of non-fat dry milk.

Deputy Presidential Spokesman Anthony Golez said Vilsack’s four-day visit, along with 20-man high-powered business delegation, would “allay the fears” of the Filipino-American investors currently pouring in resources that Philippines remains a safe and secure investment hub.

“One of the fears of the business community is corruption and this will somehow dampen the business climate in the Philippines,” he told in a press briefing.

He also extended the Philippine government’s gratitude for bringing in a business mission “to engage and look into prospective business ventures” in the country.

Vilsack started his four-day visit on Saturday to explore trade opportunities and to encourage various US industries to invest in country’s sectors, including biofuels, beverages, processed goods, dairy products and meat and poultry, agricultural machineries, and equipment sectors.

His investment-led mission also met with officials from almost 200 local companies and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).

Among the agribusiness companies that form the trade contingent are Agri-Ima GIS Technology; American Trading Services, LLC; Cargill, Inc.; EcoVative Resources; Garuda International; Hima International; Intervision Foods; Kraft Foods; Land O’Lakes; Novick Industries Ltd.; The Alan Group; US Fed Group; Valmont Industries, Inc.; and Verdant Ocean, Inc. (with a report by Charissa M. Luci)