A bipartisan group of Senators sent a letter this week to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, asking the administration to collect a “robust economic analysis” to evaluate how changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) would affect agriculture.
The letter says, “It’s imperative that before any changes are made to NAFTA or any other free trade agreement, that economic analysis illustrating the impact on the full supply chain of the industries involved gets looked at. As such, we request an economic analysis that evaluates the impacts to crop and livestock sectors as a result of any change to NAFTA.”
America is the world’s top exporter of food and agricultural products. U.S. agriculture depends on access to international markets in which to sell their goods. As the fifth round of the NAFTA negotiations wrapped up Tuesday, the senators clearly stated that any changes to U.S. trade policy must be positive for agriculture. That’s especially important because farmers and ranchers have been struggling with lower prices for their products.
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting News Service.