"In an effort to end trade sanctions against U.S. farm products by Mexico, the American Farm Bureau Federation sent a letter today to President Barack Obama seeking quick development and implementation of a cross-border trucking program that would comply with U.S. obligations under the North American Free Trade Agreement," AFBF says on its Web site.
The program was suspended as part of a recent spending bill. "This action by Congress has come at a cost to U.S. agriculture and our exports to one of our top markets,” AFBF President Bob Stallman said. "We urge you to find a resolution that will honor our obligations under NAFTA, eliminating any cause for Mexico to halt U.S. trade."
"Under the terms of NAFTA, the U.S. and Mexico each agreed to allow trucks from the other nation access into their countries," adds the AFBF. "Unfortunately, the U.S. maintained its restriction on Mexican trucks crossing the border even after NAFTA implementation began." (Read more)
Now that the pilot program has been eliminated, the U.S. finds itself out of compliance with its obligations under NAFTA. Under the treaty, "Mexico has the right to retaliate against U.S. products entering Mexico, and it has done so,” Stallman said. “This retaliation will affect hundreds of millions of dollars worth of fruit, vegetable, nut, juice, wine, processed foods and oilcake exports to Mexico.”
what about the detrimental impact of U.S. corn upon the ag-industry in Mexico Mr. Stallman?
ReplyDeleteBecause of the different types of corn involved, both sides benefit from this type of trading agreement. Mexico is a very important trading partner and because of this problem all of us in agriculture will now pay the price. I'm glad Farm Bureau is working to solve this problem.
ReplyDeleteWe export yellow corn to Mexico. Yellow corn is used for livestock feed and an abundant supply helps support the growing production of livestock in Mexico. White corn is used for human consumption and is the predominant crop in Mexico. The reality is that the two do not compete and our export benefits agriculture in Mexico.
ReplyDeleteIt is very important to remember that the yellow corn that the US ships to Mexico, has allowed Mexican Hog and Poultry farms to grow. This is because the corn the US ships is mostly used for their livestock operations. The corn that Mexico ships to us is white corn and is primarily used for Human consumption. The ability for the two countries to trade is beneficial to both sides.
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