AMI Warns of Trade Erosion without TPA

August 2, 2001

The U.S. share of global agricultural exports will continue to erode in the coming years if the Congress does not act soon on trade promotion authority (TPA), American Meat Institute Vice President for International Trade Leonard W. Condon told a Senate panel.

The Senate Subcommittee on Production and Price Competitiveness questioned representatives of several commodity groups about why U.S. agricultural exports have declined over the past several years. Condon and other agricultural representatives said unanimously that exports were hindered by high tariffs and non tariff barriers worldwide.

To remedy this, Condon urged the panel to restore TPA as soon as possible. President Bush has called for the restoration of TPA before the World Trade Organization ministerial meeting in Doha, Qatar, in November.

Condon told the committee that while the meat and poultry industry has done well in the past few years, these products reach only a handful of export-friendly markets. Currently, most U.S. meat exports go to Mexico, Canada, Japan and Korea. Condon also requested continued funding to USDA for contribution to the U.S. Meat Export Federation.