Non-coronavirus efforts continue
March 31, 2020
While the coronavirus crisis dominated the work of NMPF – and everyone else – in March, the organization still progressed in other areas, including:
- Following NMPF Board approval of the FARM Workforce Development 2nd party evaluation tool at its March meeting, FARM staff is working to finalize the FARM Workforce Development Participation Agreement for coops and processors to voluntarily participate in this program area. The Participation Agreement will be distributed within the next 2 weeks. Staff also is working to integrate the evaluation tool into all the relevant platforms, including the database and app, necessary for full implementation.
- Connecticut dairy farmer James “Cricket” Jacquier, a member of NMPF’s Board of Directors and Executive Committee, testified March 10 before the House Committee on Agriculture’s Subcommittee on Livestock and Foreign Agriculture to provide a dairy perspective on agricultural trade. Jacquier urged Congress to work with the Administration to use negotiating resources wisely to target important agricultural markets, noted the need for careful implementation of negotiated trade agreements, and raised concerns with European efforts to misuse geographical indications to confiscate common food names.
- NMPF and USDEC submitted joint comments Feb. 26 to the U.S. delegate on the Codex Task Force on Antimicrobials Resistance Draft Revised Code of Practice to Contain and Minimize Foodborne Antimicrobial Resistance. The comments emphasized that much progress was made at the 7th CODEX TFAMR meeting and that it should proceed to the next step for adoption in the CODEX process. The few remaining items can be work on through an electronic working group and finalized at the 8th CODEX TFAMR meeting.
