Tag: mexico dairy trade

Dairy Industry Leader Testifies before Congress on USMCA Dairy Priorities

Posted on by Rachel Ravencraft

Michael Lichte, Chief Insights and Optimization Officer for Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), testified today before the House Committee on Agriculture on the importance of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) to U.S. dairy and the need for strengthening dairy implementation and enforcement during the agreement’s forthcoming joint review. Lichte served as a witness representing the National Milk Producers Federation as a board member and the U.S. Dairy Export Council as a director.

“Export demand now accounts for 17% of total U.S. milk production and has become one of the primary drivers of incremental growth across the dairy sector,” Lichte said. “For DFA and the U.S. dairy industry broadly, USMCA remains one of the most consequential trade agreements affecting long-term competitiveness, manufacturing investment, and farm-level economic stability. That’s why it’s essential that we strengthen and renew it.”

Mexico and Canada together account for more than 40% of all U.S. dairy exports by value. Lichte’s testimony focused on Canada’s administration of its dairy tariff-rate quotas in a manner that limits trade and its circumvention of USMCA export disciplines for dairy proteins, while also highlighting the importance of preserving U.S. exporters’ ability to use common cheese names like “feta” in Mexico.

On Canada, Lichte documented chronic underfill of negotiated dairy tariff-rate quotas, with cumulative fill rates reaching only 64% for industrial-use cheese, 34% for fluid milk, and just 7% for skim milk powder through 2025. He also detailed Canada’s growing use of alternative tariff classifications to move surplus dairy proteins into U.S. and global markets in ways that evade USMCA’s dairy protein export caps, a practice confirmed by a May 2026 U.S. International Trade Commission report.

“The underlying market distortions USMCA sought to discipline continue to affect U.S. manufacturers and global dairy protein markets,” Lichte added. “With appropriate enforcement and modernization, USMCA can continue supporting investment, export growth, and economic opportunity for the United States’ dairy farmers and processors for generations to come.”

A link to the written testimony can be found here.

NMPF Highlights USMCA Importance at Events

Posted on by Rachel Ravencraft

NMPF and the U.S. Dairy Export Council co-hosted a U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement roundtable with Farmers for Free Trade on May 6 at Belgioioso’s facility in Green Bay, WI, alongside Congressman Tony Wied, R-WI, Land O’Lakes producer Amber Horn-Leiterman, and Wisconsin agriculture and business leaders.

NMPF made the case for targeted improvements to USMCA dairy provisions, including combatting Canada’s ongoing manipulation of dairy tariff-rate quota administration, addressing Canadian circumvention of dairy protein export disciplines and ensuring that Mexico preserves full U.S. cheese access to the Mexican market.

NMPF furthered its message two days later in Arizona, where United Dairymen of Arizona’s Jim Boyle, Jr. participated in a May 8 Phoenix roundtable with Governor Katie Hobbs hosted by the Arizona Chamber of Commerce & Industry and Farmers for Free Trade.

Boyle highlighted the expanded export opportunities dairy producers have gained through the North American Free Trade Agreement and USMCA and emphasized the importance of improving and renewing the current trade deal.

With the mandatory July 1, 2026, USMCA joint review approaching, NMPF and USDEC are focused on ensuring that outstanding dairy issues with Canada are resolved, that trade remains fully open with Mexico, and that the three nations renew the trade deal.