By DOUG SCHMITZ Iowa Correspondent ST. LOUIS, Mo. — The American Soybean Assoc. (ASA) and National Cattlemen’s Beef Assoc. (NCBA) are among the nation’s largest farm groups backing President Donald Trump’s nomination of Gregg Doud for chief agricultural negotiator under the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR). “Doud is a farm policy veteran with a wealth of experience and a solid understanding of the vital role trade plays in the U.S. agriculture economy,” said John Heisdorffer, ASA vice president.
Raised on a farm near Mankato, Kan., Doud owns part of his family’s farm that is more 100 years old, which his parents still operate. He and his family live on their horse farm in Lothian, Md. As current resident of the Commodity Markets Council in Washington, D.C., his background includes experience as senior aide to the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee – where he assisted in drafting the 2014 farm bill – NCBA chief economist and ASA international trade analyst.
The ASA also urged prompt confirmation, as the USTR plays a central role in developing international trade policy and leading negotiations. “With the upcoming renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), we hope both the administration and Congress will do their parts to quickly advance and confirm Doud’s nomination,” Heisdorffer said.
Dave Miller, Iowa Farm Bureau Federation director of research and commodity services, concurred. “As the U.S. begins updating the 23-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement with Mexico, it is good that the administration is bolstering its trade negotiating team with the addition of a seasoned agricultural veteran,” he said.
“Doud comes from a strong family farm tradition and has a great understanding of farm-level agricultural issues from his prior work with the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, U.S. Wheat Associates, World Perspectives and the Senate Agricultural Committee staff.”
Miller said Doud understands the economics of trade and its importance to all farmers. “His selection as the chief agricultural negotiator for the U.S. Trade Representative office is a good sign that the administration knows just how important agricultural trade with Mexico is to all U.S. farmers.”
Appearances for NAFTA
On June 20, USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue met with Canadian Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Lawrence MacAulay and Mexican Secretary of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food Jose Calzada, at the first trilateral meetings in Savannah, Ga.
“Our three nations are connected not only geographically, but through our deeply integrated agricultural markets,” Perdue said. “Our trading relationship is vital to the economies – and the people – of our respective countries.
“We are working together to support and create good jobs in all three countries. We share a commitment to keeping our markets open and transparent so that trade can continue to grow. That mutual commitment was reaffirmed in our discussions this week.”
He said NAFTA “has greatly helped our respective agricultural sectors, as well as our consumers who have benefited from an ever-growing variety of safe, affordable food products all year around.
“While even the best trading partnerships face challenges from time to time, our agricultural differences are relatively few in the context of the $85 billion in agricultural trade that flows between our three nations each year,” he said.
Over the years, the United States, Mexico, and Canada have also worked collaboratively to protect plant and animal health, conduct joint research and share best practices, Perdue said.
“These efforts have helped to eradicate several pests and diseases from the region, differentiating us from the rest of the world,” he added. “Our three countries remain committed to continued collaboration to ensure a safe and reliable regional supply chain that makes the North American agriculture sector more competitive.”
Colin Woodall, NCBA senior vice president of government affairs, said as important trade negotiations take place over NAFTA “and, hopefully, a bilateral agreement with Japan, we look forward to working with Gregg and his team to ensure that the voice of American beef producers is heard loud and clear.”
Doud also has the support of the National Assoc. of Wheat Growers (NAWG). “Trade is a top priority for U.S. wheat farmers and this nomination is welcome news to America’s wheat farmers,” said Chandler Goule, CEO.
“With the administration currently working on renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and our desire to see the administration move aggressively to expand our markets abroad, we encourage the U.S. Senate to quickly confirm Doud as chief agricultural negotiator.”
At a June 21 rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Trump discussed his plans to renegotiate NAFTA, eliminate federal land and family farm incursions, as well as end the estate tax, revamp the EPA and bolster ethanol, in which Iowa leads the nation.
Both the House and Senate are organizing letters to USTR Robert Lighthizer, urging him to prioritize the interest of the American agricultural industry during the NAFTA renegotiation. The House letter is being led by Reps. Mike Kelly and Lloyd Smucker (R-Pa.) and the Senate letter, by Sens. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) and John Thune (R- S.D.).
The ASA said the letters highlight significant gains for the farm industry under NAFTA, namely quadrupling U.S. ag exports to Canada between 1993 and 2015, and emphasize that renegotiations must preserve the economic increases NAFTA has seen over the years. |
