Havana ? American farm leaders called for an end to the U.S. trade embargo on Wednesday during talks with communist Cuba that have resulted in at nearly $110 million in new U.S. food sales to the island.

Interest by American food companies in doing more business to Cuba has grown even as the U.S. government tightens restriction on the island, including stepped-up enforcement of rules on American travel.

“Ending the embargo is the right thing to do,” Iowa Agriculture Secretary Patty Judge told a news conference. She said U.S. restrictions on travel to Cuba by most Americans should also be eliminated.

Representing 147 agribusinesses, port authorities, supermarkets and other enterprises, the Americans traveled here for talks to mark the second anniversary of the first U.S. commercial food shipments to post-revolutionary Cuba.

That first shipment, $300,000 worth of chicken parts, sailed into Havana Bay from Gulfport, Mississippi. on Dec. 16, 2001.

Since then, Cuba has contracted to buy more than $500 million in goods on a cash basis, communist officials say.

By the end of Wednesday, Cuban officials reported another $25 million in new sales, bringing them closer to their goal of $130 million for the three days of talks. The products included powdered milk, cotton, chicken and soy.

On Tuesday night, Fidel Castro invited all 250 American farm representatives to a formal dinner, which lasted until about 3 a.m. Wednesday. It was the most elaborate in a string of meetings Castro has held with the U.S. visitors since talks began Monday, demonstrating his desire to do business with Americans despite their government’s efforts to undermine him.