In response to the announcement this week that the Trump administration will not be renewing the U.S.-Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA) at this time, the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy has released the following statement from Karen Hansen-Kuhn, Director of Trade and International Strategies:
“The announcement from U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer that the USMCA review process will continue means there is more time to review and revise this flawed agreement. This should mean taking a clear look at the actual state of our food systems and rural economies, instead of relying on outdated notions that expanding agricultural exports will somehow solve the problems of low prices, unstable markets, and corporate concentration that plague all three countries.
Organizations representing farmers and consumers demand the removal of obstacles to better food labeling. This includes changing the trade rules that eliminated Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling (MCOOL) for meat. The three countries should agree to establish a Peace Clause on transparency in labeling. They should agree not to bring trade disputes over this issue and instead set a new process with civil society to find a solution.
Increasing market transparency is one tool to reduce corporate concentration in agriculture. The three countries should also discard USMCA rules on intellectual property rights for seeds that restrict farmers’ right to save and share seeds and support new rules on agriculture and trade that would make our food and farm systems more resilient, fair and sustainable.”
The decision not to extend the existing agreement for another six years sets in place a process of yearly reviews, until the possible expiration of the agreement in July 2036.
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Based in Minneapolis with offices in Washington, D.C., and Berlin, Germany, the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy works locally and globally at the intersection of policy and practice to ensure fair and sustainable food, farm and trade systems. To learn more, visit: www.iatp.org.
Download a PDF of the statement here.
