National Potato Council Reacts to USMCA Pt 1
I’m Bob Larson. You could almost hear the sigh of relief from the American ag sector Wednesday after President Trump signed the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement.
National Potato Council CEO Kam Quarles says at this point it wasn’t unexpected, but it was certainly a huge relief …
QUARLES … “It’s very positive news today. We’re excited that we got to this place. It took a lot of work, but when Congress and the Administration can overwhelmingly agree on something, that’s a pretty good day.”
Especially, Quarles says for our relationship with our closest neighbors …
QUARLES … “Mexico and Canada make up two of our top three export markets. They’re collectively about $300-million annually in potato exports. Japan is our largest export market.”
Quarles says the USMCA should remove one of our biggest trading obstacles …
QUARLES … “With USMCA being ratified, it takes these retaliatory tariffs off the table that were compromising those markets over the past couple of years. And, it really sets new terms of trade for the coming years.”
It was time, Quarles says, for an upgrade …
QUARLES … “It’s a revision of NAFTA. It’s not a revolution, it’s an evolution, but it’s a very necessary evolution, and so we’re excited about that.”
Quarels says Canada should follow soon with their own ratification.
Tune in tomorrow for more on the USMCA signing and the message it sends.
