TRADE UPDATE

Food & Agriculture
August 30, 2024

By Kristy Goodfellow, Vice President of Trade and Industry Affairs and Ameya Khanapurkar, Trade Intern

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HIGHLIGHTS

“There is just no way around it. Congress must also step up to the plate and pass a new farm bill that makes a robust investment in USDA’s trade promotion programs.”

——– – Sen. John Boozman (R-AR), ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry on the agriculture trade deficit

AGRICULTURAL TRADE

Deficit Poised to Break Record

  • The agricultural trade balance comes into the spotlight again as USDA estimates an even larger trade deficit in fiscal year (FY) 2025 in the Outlook for U.S. Agricultural Trade.
  • USDA now projects U.S. agricultural exports in FY 2025 will be $169.5 billion, down $4.0 billion from the revised forecast for FY 2024.  The report attributes the change to lower prices of soybeans, corn, cotton, and lower volume of beef exports.
  • USDA projects U.S. agricultural imports in FY 2025 at $212.0 billion, $8.0 billion higher than the revised FY 2024 estimate. The report attributes this change to rising imports of horticultural as well as sugar and tropical products. 
  • U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-AR), ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, weighed in calling this “uncharted territory” and urging the Administration to more actively engage in talks to boost U.S. agricultural exports. He also noted that “Congress must step up to the plate and pass a new farm bill that makes a robust investment in USDA’s trade promotion programs.”
  • Speaking to reporters following the report’s publication, Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack pointed to a drop in Chinese business as a major reason for the slump, something he tied to American political rhetoric about the U.S.-China relationship. Chinese officials, Vilsack said, “pay attention to what’s being said and what’s being done here in this country.”
  • This news follows calls earlier this year for the Biden Administration to increase foreign market access for U.S. agriculture producers, including a Feb. 15 U.S. industry letter drawing Congresses attention to the agriculture trade deficit.
    • Lawmakers have also been active on the subject, including in a Feb. 23 bipartisan letter from the Agriculture Trade Caucus leaders and 24 members of Congress urging the Administration to “proactively engage and secure enforceable, high-standard agreements” and a Feb. 26 bipartisan letter from 22 members that cautioned some of the trade figures “may be attributable in some regard to the proactive trade policies of our economic competitors.”

USDA/USTR

USDA, USTR Seek New Trade Advisory Committee Members

  • The Department of Agriculture and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative are seeking new members of six Agricultural Technical Advisory Committees (ATACs).
  • The committees are comprised of senior representatives who advise the administration on issues critical to their specific sectors. Members are sought for four-year terms on the following committees:
    • Animals and animal products
    • Fruits and vegetables
    • Grains, feed, oilseeds and planting seeds
    • Processed foods
    • Sweeteners and sweetener products
    • Tobacco, cotton, peanuts and hemp
  • The application deadline is Sept. 20, 2024, at 5 p.m. EST.

DAIRY AND MEAT

Baldwin Advocates for Market Access and Use of Common Names

  • Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) is pushing the Biden administration to pursue fair international market access for Wisconsin meat and cheese exports. 
  • In a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, Baldwin specifically asks that the U.S. establish a “comprehensive USTR policy dedicated to proactively protecting U.S. exporters’ market access rights to export products using common food and beverage names.”
  • Baldwin also requested the Administration prioritize “creating meaningful benefits and opportunities for American agriculture” and for rigorous enforcement of a bilateral agreement with Chile finalized in July. 
  • Baldwin argues that the EU’s geographical indication restrictions on common food are now acting in global markets as a nontariff trade barrier rather than as an intellectual property system.

World Trade Organization

Report on Negotiations from a Latin American Perspective

  • The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) released a book – Navigating the Trade Landscape: A Latin American Perspective Building on the WTO 13th Ministerial Conference – with the intent of strengthening the participation of the countries of the Americas in World Trade Organization multilateral negotiations and highlighting the key role of agricultural trade in agrifood system transformation.
  • The book starts by highlighting trends in global trade and includes a portrayal of certain historical phases of global integration.
  • The book – which will be published on Sept. 10 at the WTO Public Forum – includes chapters on a range of topics, including geopolitical changes and their implications; public stockholding; transformation of domestic support programs; and food security and trade.
From Page 12 of Navigating The Trade Landscape: A Latin American Perspective Building on the WTO 13th Ministerial Conference