Agricultural News
Commodity Groups Show Solid Front in Support of Trans Pacific Partnership
Thu, 12 Nov 2015 05:45:15
Representatives from six national farm groups joined U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service Administrator Phil Karsting in Kansas City Wednesday for a media event to discuss the implications of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) for American agriculture. The event featured farmer leaders from the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, American Soybean Association, National Pork Producers Council, National Corn Growers Association, U.S. Grains Council and National Association of Wheat Growers, all proclaiming the importance of the TPP for their individual industry sectors.
All of the farmers on the panel told the media that TPP is a good deal for their respective commodity sectors- although no one had a solid prediction as to how much economic benefit would come from the trade deal. USDA's Karsting said that he would point to previous trade agreements that have been positive for US agriculture as one way to measure how much potential TPP has for agricultural interests going forward.
One of the ag leaders expressing his support for the Pacific Rim deal was Brett Blankenship. "TPP makes great strides in expanding trade opportunities for wheat in the Pacific Rim. This agreement lays the foundation for future trade agreements. NAWG is hopeful for quick congressional consideration and that other countries will quickly join the TPP," said the National Association of Wheat Growers President, a wheat grower from Washtucna, Wash.
The cattle industry was represented by Bob McCan, immediate past President of the NCBA. McCan is a rancher from south Texas- and he says the immediate tariff reduction for US beef destined for Japan is a very tangible benefit for the US Cattle industry. He says that Australia has jumped ahead of the US in negotiating better trade terms with our largest beef export market- Japan- and that TPP helps the US catch up in the bringing down tariffs in this most important market.
Texas Soybean farmer Wade Cowan was another of the farm group leaders beating the drum for TPP. "The TPP is a good deal for soybean farmers and our livestock customers. We back it and we will push Congress to do the same," said American Soybean Association President Wade Cowan, a farmer from Brownfield, Texas. "We know that this will further expand our access to valuable markets in Asia and Latin America, but specifically, there are several key sections of the agreement that will move our trade significantly forward. The sanitary and phytosanitary provisions contained in the TPP will help eliminate many of the non-scientific barriers to market entry that hang us up in particular markets, and the biotechnology provisions in the agreement will help to ensure that from export partner to export partner, science is the common framework on which our soybean technology is regulated."
After the presentation on Thursday afternoon, Radio Oklahoma Ag Network Farm Director Ron Hays talked with McCan and Blankenship about the advantage gained by the wheat and cattle industries if TPP is approved by Congress. Click on the LISTEN Bar below to hear their comments.
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