As most agricultural eyes were on progress of the farm bill last week in Congress, some very prominent farmers were in another nation’s capitol below the equator signing a new agreement to create an alliance between North and South American corn growers.

Leaders of the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) and the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), joined with maize producers of Argentina and Brazil (MAIZAR and ABRAMILHO) to form MAIZALL—The International Maize Alliance with the goal of addressing key issues concerning food security, biotechnology, stewardship, trade and producer image. The MAIZALL alliance was launched as part of the MAIZAR 2013 Congress meeting in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

“Food Security is a priority for every country,” said Pam Johnson, NCGA President. “Countries can be food secure without being self-sufficient by establishing relationships and building trust with exporting countries to be long-term, reliable suppliers of quality feed and food supplies.”

The primary focus of this new alliance is emphasize the need for better consumer understanding of production agriculture, including the benefits of biotechnology and advancing the global acceptance on the capacity to produce maize for feed, food and fuel. MAIZALL will also conduct outreach to governments and stakeholders on the need for trade-enabling biotechnology policies and regulatory procedures.

Read more from USGC and see a set of photos here.