U.S., Latin American Dairy Industries Continue Collaboration
October 11, 2018
In September, NMPF’s Jim Mulhern and Jaime Castaneda, as well as Jay Waldvogel of Dairy Farmers of America, traveled to Argentina as part of the 15th annual Pan-American Dairy Congress to discuss ongoing trade issues and ways to address those challenges to benefit producers, businesses and consumers in both the United States and Latin America.
The congress brought leaders from across the region gather to learn about industry innovation, effective public communication, government policies’ impact on the food sector, dairy’s role in child nutrition, and maintaining international competitiveness. Mulhern discussed consumer trends affecting dairy and the U.S. dairy industry’s efforts to address those trends.
The U.S. representatives at the event were able explore how science-based policies can result from better collaboration among governments. They also met with colleagues from the Pan-American Dairy Federation (FEPALE) to discuss how to put forth a unified defense against non-scientific regulations brought forward in forums like the World Health Organization (WHO), Codex Alimentarius Commission and Office of International Epizootics (OIE).
Discussion also included protecting common-name food products. NMPF explained to South American dairy representatives how Europe’s crusade to monopolize common food names like feta and muenster is a disservice to producers and consumers around the globe. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue made a similar pitch at the recent G-20 meetings in Argentina: “We need to stand together against abuse of geographic indications,” the Secretary said, reflecting NMPF’s efforts to build alliances with its Latin American counterparts.
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