The Southeastern produce industry has been very vocal about the issues it faces with the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and now the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which is the NAFTA rewrite. Due to heavy competition from Mexico, the industry says rural communities have been impacted and businesses have not been able to survive.
After the USMCA was released, it was evident that the new agreement did not include provisions to protect the Southeastern produce industry. With a vote quickly approaching to ratify the USMCA, industry groups and some lawmakers have not given up the fight for protective provisions.
However, Ted McKinney, under secretary for trade and foreign agricultural affairs with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, doesn’t believe these provisions will be added. Hear his comments:
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