Ag and Food Coalition:  Pass TPP Now

Two hundred twenty-five food and agricultural companies and trade associations sent a letter to Congress on Monday calling for a swift vote on the Trans Pacific Partnership. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association was one of the groups signing the letter. NCBA President Tracy Brunner said it’s time to level the playing field for American cattle producers.  Japan is American beef’s largest export market; and, right now, American beef faces an import tariff that’s eleven percent higher than Australian beef. Australis is America’s biggest competitor in the marketplace. Upon TPP implementation, the tariff on American beef drops eleven percent right away, and continues to fall until it reaches a nine percent tariff rate. Brunner says every day TPP doesn’t pass results in lost dollars for American producers.

A coalition of dairy groups also signed the letter. The National Milk Producers Federation, U.S. Dairy Export Council, and the International Dairy Foods Association asked members of Congress to support the TPP agreement. They said the TPP is an historic pact between 12 countries containing features that will help America’s dairy farmers and processors in the future, “After months of analysis and deliberation, all three organizations have endorsed the pact, saying the agreement presents, on balance, a step forward for U.S. dairy farmers and companies that process and market their milk.”

Source: NAFB News Service

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