Jakarta (ANTARA) – Indonesia’s Agriculture Ministry is seeking deeper technical cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on animal health and national biosecurity to strengthen food security and boost livestock competitiveness, officials said on Monday.The push followed a visit to Jakarta by U.S. Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Luke J. Lindberg, aimed at expanding agricultural trade ties and exploring cooperation in technology transfer, innovation, and capacity building.“We see major opportunities to expand technical cooperation with USDA, especially in animal health and biosecurity,” Agung Suganda, director general of livestock and animal health at Indonesia’s Agriculture Ministry, said in a statement.He said the visit marked a key moment to deepen bilateral ties, with Lindberg accompanied by dozens of U.S. exporters and agribusiness executives keen to strengthen trade and investment links.Talks focused on advancing mutually beneficial agricultural trade, including follow-ups to negotiations on a reciprocal Indonesia-U.S. trade agreement, while safeguarding sustainability in Indonesia’s domestic livestock sector. Suganda stressed that small farmers and producers remain the backbone of Indonesia’s food system and must be protected, warning that trade cooperation should promote inclusive and sustainable growth, not merely expand trade flows.He said technical cooperation would enhance the competitiveness of Indonesia’s livestock sector amid global trade dynamics, stressing that stronger biosecurity, technology transfer, innovation, and human capital were key to building resilience and boosting downstream value-added production.The USDA said its trade mission to Jakarta aims to expand market access, raise U.S. agricultural exports, and capitalize on opportunities under the reciprocal trade framework with Indonesia.The mission involves 41 agribusiness firms, trade groups, and representatives from three U.S. state agriculture departments, reflecting strong commercial interest in Southeast Asia’s largest economy.”This mission turns the historic trade agreement with Indonesia into real sales for American farmers and producers,” Lindberg said, calling Indonesia one of the fastest-growing agricultural markets in the region.He added that rising demand for high-quality U.S. products, combined with closer bilateral cooperation, could strengthen long-term agricultural partnerships between the two countries.