President Trump’s nominee for U.S. trade representative, Robert Lighthizer, said at his confirmation hearing that he will follow Trump’s “America first” policy. Reminded by farm-state senators of the importance of exports to the agricultural economy, Lighthizer responded, “I assure you we will prioritize agriculture,” reported DTN.
Senate Agriculture chairman Pat Roberts criticized suggestions the administration should bring back mandatory country-of-original labels (COOL) on beef and pork. Congress repealed COOL to avert retaliatory tariffs by Canada and Mexico. “We don’t need to go down that road again,” said Roberts.
In renegotiating NAFTA, Lighthizer said, “We will be careful not to lose what we gained” for agriculture, said DTN. Lighthizer said Japan would be a primary target for greater access for U.S. farm exports.
DTN quoted Lighthizer as saying, “It is hard for me to understand why we tolerate so many barriers to agricultural trade when America is the No. 1 producer of agricultural products … I think opening up more markets for agricultural sales is a priority for us.”