The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a $200 million award to 57 organizations through the Agricultural Trade Promotion Program to help the nation’s agriculture community identify and access new export markets. The Florida Department of Citrus was one of the specified organizations and is set to receive $550,000 in funding to promote citrus in various new markets. Commissioner Nicole “Nikki” Fried shared, “We’re thrilled the USDA has provided this opportunity …
USDA Awards Agricultural Trade Promotion Program Funding
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has awarded $200 million to 57 organizations through the Agricultural Trade Promotion Program (ATP) to help U.S. farmers and ranchers identify and access new export markets. The ATP is one of three USDA programs created to mitigate the effects of unjustified trade retaliation against U.S. farmers and exporters. …
Farmers, Ranchers Need USMCA
The following statement can be attributed to American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall: “Farmers need the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), and the sooner the better. U.S. agriculture needs strong trade agreements to access customers around the world and grow our farm economy. We are grateful for the Administration’s work to move this agreement forward. We urge Congress to finish …
Study Shows Trade Agreements by Competitors will Threaten U.S. Dairy Exports to Japan
A study released by the U.S. Dairy Export Council projects that new trade agreements between Japan and other countries will put U.S. dairy exports at a competitive disadvantage, resulting in lost U.S. sales of $5.4 billion over 21 years. The Japanese dairy market, the fourth-largest export destination for U.S. dairy exports, is expected to continue to grow in years to …
Tariff Mitigation Payments May Not Be What Was Expected
A senior USDA official says the amount of money sent to farmers to help mitigate the financial damage from the trade war may not be as much as expected. An Agriculture Dot Com article quotes USDA Under Secretary Bill Northey as saying up to two-thirds of the Trump trade aid payments were made by early January. Northey says, “up to …
Groups Urge Administration To Lift Metals Tariffs
A diverse, ad hoc coalition of more than 45 groups representing many sectors of the U.S. economy joined the National Pork Producers Council in calling for an end to U.S. tariffs on Canadian and Mexican aluminum and steel imports so that America can take advantage of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The Trump administration on June 1, 2018, imposed a 25 …
EU Won’t Include Agriculture In Trade Talks With U.S.
The National Pork Producers Council said it cannot support a trade agreement between the United States and the European Union that does not include agriculture, after the European Commission today issued draft negotiating mandates to EU member states that doesn’t include talks on agriculture. “We are infuriated,” said NPPC President Jim Heimerl, a pork producer from Johnstown, Ohio. “The EU …
Plenty of Agriculture Trade Opportunities for U.S. and Europe
There continues to be abundant opportunities for farm trade between the United States and the European Union despite the omission of agriculture in the European list of negotiating areas on a potential free trade agreement, European agricultural leaders said during a workshop at the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 100th Annual Convention. U.S. farmers and farm state lawmakers have pushed hard …
Farm Bureau Gives Agricultural Trade Outlook for 2019
American Farm Bureau Federation policy experts gave an overview of the issues expected to affect farmers and ranchers in 2019 in a workshop at the organization’s 100th Annual Convention. David Salmonsen, senior director of congressional relations for AFBF, said the diverse impacts of tariffs, the outcomes of free trade agreement negotiations and the future of relations with China are all …
Perdue on Extension of Market Facilitation Program Deadline
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced an extension to the original deadline for Market Facilitation Program applications. Agricultural producers who are seeking payments through the program, which is a part of the trade mitigation initiative, will now have more time to submit their applications. “President Trump instructed me, as Secretary of Agriculture, to craft a program that would …