A coalition of 96 food and agriculture organizations signed a letter in support of the nomination of Mr. Doug McKalip as the Chief Agricultural Negotiator at USTR. The letter to the Senate Finance leadership requests the expeditious confirmation of Doug McKalip and outlines his extensive qualifications and experience to succeed in the position.  

July 7, 2022

TRANSMITTED ELECTRONICALLY 

The Honorable Ron Wyden, Chairman
The Honorable Mike Crapo, Ranking Member
U.S. Senate Committee on Finance
219 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Chairman Wyden and Ranking Member Crapo:

We, the undersigned food and agriculture organizations and companies, enthusiastically support the nomination of Doug McKalip as Chief Agricultural Negotiator at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

Collectively we represent the vast majority of the food and agriculture sector, accounting for roughly one-fifth of the country’s economic activity and directly supporting over 21.5 million jobs – constituting 14 percent of total U.S. employment. 

Mr. McKalip possesses deep familiarity with the food and agriculture industry through three decades of leadership in critical roles in agriculture trade policy.

In addition to his current position as a trusted advisor to Secretary Vilsack, Mr. McKalip has served in numerous leadership positions in USDA and has represented American farmers, ranchers and agriculture around the world and advocated for U.S. agricultural products and technology. We believe he is keenly aware of the importance of trade to agriculture related jobs and its essential role in this Administration’s “worker first” trade agenda. Mr. McKalip is capable of addressing the critical need to open and maintain foreign market access and reduce barriers for U.S. food and agriculture workers and exporters for the benefit of consumers in the U.S. and across the globe.

We especially value Mr. McKalip’s deep institutional regulatory and trade experience, which equips him to have an immediate impact in the position. He is eminently qualified to be a successful Chief Agricultural Negotiator in addressing the most pressing food and agriculture trade policy issues before us. Mr. McKalip understands the critical need to reduce tariff and non-tariff barriers in the Indo-Pacific region, the management of an expanding set of trade issues with Mexico, the enforcement of existing trade agreements and the imperative of tackling non-tariff barriers to trade around the world. We believe that Mr. McKalip has the experience and expertise to reduce foreign trade barriers, secure greater market access for U.S. products and ensure enforcement of clear and fair rules with our trade partners so U.S. food and agriculture workers and our industry sectors may fairly compete in the global economy.

We strongly urge the Senate Finance Committee to advance Doug McKalip’s nomination as soon as possible. Please feel free to call upon any of the undersigned entities to discuss our rationale for supporting the nomination of Doug McKalip.

Sincerely,

CC:   Ambassador Katherine Tai
Secretary Tom Vilsack