NMPF Chief Economist Peter Vitaliano offers an update for the 2020 NMPF Virtual Town Hall.
Tag: trade
NMPF Virtual Town Hall: Trade Update
NMPF’s Trade team offers an issues update for the 2020 NMPF Virtual Town Hall.
Dairy Market Report – October 2020
U.S. Dairy Exports to Benefit from New USDA-FDA Partnership
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that will establish an interagency process to further support exports of U.S. dairy products. Both agencies play critical roles in facilitating foreign sales of American-made dairy products, which is recognized and appreciated by the U.S. dairy industry. This MOU will draw upon the expertise of FDA as well as USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) and Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) to deepen and streamline their work together on the issues facing dairy exports to the benefit of U.S. dairy farmers and manufacturers.
The U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) and the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) worked with both agencies to advance this new approach to dairy export collaboration. NMPF and USDEC deeply appreciate the USDA and FDA’s dedication to drafting this new MOU to facilitate U.S. dairy exports and their ongoing collaboration with the dairy industry. Foreign competitors are making advances in international markets, making efforts to expand overseas opportunities for U.S. dairy critical to the long-term health of U.S. dairy farmers and processors.
“Today’s announcement of an interagency MOU on dairy trade between USDA and FDA is the result of years of conversation and efforts between stakeholders within the U.S. dairy industry and the U.S. government to establish consistent guidance on tackling the rising number of export challenges facing our industry. This MOU will help our industry continue to grow in an increasingly competitive global environment,” said Tom Vilsack, president and CEO of USDEC.
“This new partnership ensures that the staff at USDA and FDA are working together in the most efficient way possible to lower barriers for our farmer’s dairy exports. Increasing U.S. dairy exports will strengthen the health of our farmers and rural communities, which is more important than ever as America’s dairy industry faces new and unprecedented challenges. We appreciate all of the hard work from both agencies and stand ready to support the USDA and FDA’s commitment to open new doors for U.S. dairy exports,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF.
NMPF’s Castaneda Says U.S. Needs to Be Careful in Mexican Trade Issues
NMPF Senior Vice President for Policy Strategy and International Trade Jaime Castaneda says the U.S. needs to be careful in how it handles concerns about trade with Mexico of seasonal agricultural products, given the ripple effect Mexican trade has across agriculture. Castaneda also discussed the USMCA trade agreement, dairy sales to China and other issues on the “Adams on Agriculture” podcast.
NMPF’s Morris Says USMCA Must Be Protected
NMPF’s vice president for trade, Shawna Morris, talks about the importance of enforcing the dairy provisions of the USMCA trade agreement, including access to Canada’s market and the protection of common cheese names in Mexico, on the Adams on Agriculture podcast.
CCFN’s Castaneda Discusses Why Cheese Names Should Be Left Alone
Jaime Castaneda, the executive director of the Consortium for Common Food Names, discusses why nontariff barriers against cheeses that use common terms like havarti in their names harm American farmers, limit choices for consumers and have put farming and manufacturing jobs across an essential sector at risk. The chat on the “Adams on Agriculture” podcast comes in the wake of a Senate letter last week in which 61 U.S. senators asked for more protection of feta, parmesan and other common food names.
NMPF’s Bjerga on Dairy Trade and “Sharing Our Story”
NMPF’s Senior Vice President of Communications, Alan Bjerga, discusses the challenges of enforcing the new USMCA trade agreement for dairy; also, a discussion of NMPF’s new “Sharing Our Story” effort, highlighting how dairy farmers have faced the challenges of coronavirus, on RFD-TV.
NMPF’s Castaneda on Dairy’s Canada Concerns
Jaime Castaneda, NMPF Senior Vice President for Policy Strategy and International Trade, discusses concerns about how Canada may be reducing access to its dairy market through its use of tariff-rate quotas (TRQs) on the Adams on Agriculture podcast.
NMPF’s Bjerga on Dairy’s Electoral Power and “Dairy Defined”
NMPF’s Alan Bjerga discusses the relationship between top dairy states and top swing states in the 2020 presidential campaign; plus, a discussion of NMPF’s “Dairy Defined” opinion and podcast series, on RFD-TV.
U.S. Dairy Industry Praises Administration and Congress for Final Passage of USMCA
ARLINGTON, VA – The U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) and National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) cheered today’s Senate vote paving the way for the President’s signature of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
Looking ahead, USDEC and NMPF urged U.S. officials to carefully monitor Canada and Mexico’s USMCA commitments once the trade deal takes effect to ensure its provisions are enforced accordingly so that the dairy industry is able to reap the full benefits of the agreement negotiated by Ambassador Lighthizer and the negotiating teams at USTR and USDA.
“USMCA makes important strides to break down trade barriers, opening the door to new opportunities and supporting the flow of high-quality American dairy products to two valuable export markets,” said Tom Vilsack, president and CEO of USDEC. “The strong enforcement measures included in the final agreement give officials the tools necessary to hold our trade partners accountable and ensure the gains secured by USMCA are completely realized. We are grateful to the Administration for the sizable accomplishments secured in USMCA on dairy. With this trade deal complete, negotiators can now turn their attention to other key markets around the world in order to gain further ground for U.S. dairy.”
“America’s dairy farmers are celebrating today’s bipartisan vote as a win. Under President Trump’s leadership, USTR and USDA negotiated an agreement that will deliver a more certain future for our dairy farmers and rural economy,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF. “The U.S. must now remain diligent and proactively work with Canada and Mexico to implement USMCA in both letter and spirit. Full compliance is essential to achieving more fair trade with Canada and protecting American-made cheeses in Mexico.”
USMCA fundamentally changes Canada’s trade-distorting policies, reforms Canada’s controversial dairy pricing system and provides exclusive Canadian market access for U.S. farmers and manufacturers. According to the International Trade Commission, U.S. dairy exports are projected to increase by more than $314 million a year. USMCA also strengthens the relationship between Mexico and the U.S. and establishes new protections for products that rely on common cheese names, such as parmesan and feta.
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Dairy Defined: Be Thankful for Dairy’s Global Success This Christmas
ARLINGTON, Va. – Despite the seasonal pressures to buy, buy, and buy, the holidays are best as a season for giving. Yes, that means solicitations – deserving charities fill mailboxes, and earnest pleas to remember the less fortunate have become staples of the holiday season.
But for many people in less-wealthy parts of the world, the property for which they can be most thankful is something people in rich nations take for granted: Dairy cows. For all the disparagement it receives in some, more affluent quarters, the fact is that dairy provides livelihoods and nutrition to hundreds of millions of people, many of them poorer, worldwide. Dairy lifts people from poverty and protects them from hunger. Dairy gives women jobs and sends girls to school. Dairy supports ecosystems and connects farmers to markets.
Stepping outside first-world problems for a moment, here for the holidays are a few thoughts on dairy’s global reach, and why we should be thankful for dairy farmers worldwide. (Thank you to Global Dairy Platform, an industry partnership that demonstrates dairy’s contribution to global food systems, healthy diets and sustainable livelihoods, for sharing data and graphics.)
- The world is home to about 133 million dairy farms, with about 600 million people living on those farms. Another 400 million additional people work full-time jobs throughout dairy’s value chain That means more than roughly 1 in 8 people on the planet – 1 billion – are economically supported by dairy.
- Most developing-world dairy farms have herds of two or three cows. Farms with more than 100 cows represent less than 0.3 percent of all dairy farms worldwide.
- Of those 133 million dairy farms, 37 million of them are run by women.
- Milk and dairy products account for about 14 percent of all global agricultural trade.
- Finally, dairy is continually becoming more climate-efficient; greenhouse gas emissions have dropped by 11 percent per unit in the past decade. In North America the declines have been even steeper, falling not just per unit, but in total gross emissions as well.
Dairy is a big deal globally, just as it is in the United States. But dairy looks different in developing countries. It looks more basic, like something that’s essential to simple survival. Like something that should be nurtured and supported as a basic human right.
So when rich-world advocates call for sweeping changes to global diets or eliminating entire agricultural sectors — even though such goals could be met in ways that would allow agriculture to thrive, reduce poverty and contribute to climate and nutrition solutions — keep that in mind. This isn’t only about the 40,000 U.S. dairy farms that are the most carbon-efficient in the world. It’s about 133 million farms and a billion people, many who have much more to worry about than whether their beverage choices signal virtue to their privileged friends.
Let’s be thankful that dairy benefits everyone, regardless of their circumstances or wealth. Let’s work to encourage and sustain its success and celebrate its many contributions to our health and prosperity this Christmas season. Happy holidays, and a happy new year for dairy.
(Note: NMPF’s Dairy Defined explores today’s dairy farms and industry using high-quality data and podcast interviews to explain current dairy issues and dispel myths.)
