U.S.-Mexico Trade Relations in Focus at USMEF Spring Conference

U.S.-Mexico trade relations will be one of the main topics of discussion at the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Spring Conference, which is set for May 24-26 in Minneapolis.

Guest speaker Kenneth Smith Ramos, a former chief NAFTA negotiator for Mexico, says agricultural trade has thrived under NAFTA and its successor pact, the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), bolstering food security across the continent. He says it is important for the U.S. and Mexico to be mindful of these successes as they address specific trade challenges and establish future policies for agricultural trade.

"We have very strong exports from the U.S. of course, in meat products, in oil seeds, grains, and quite a few exports from Mexico - primarily in fruits and vegetables that we can grow year round," said Ramos. "It's really successful, you're seeing other regions in the world that are suffering tremendously from some of the external shocks and the prices of commodities rising, lack of access to grains and flour.

Whereas in North America, we do have a food security environment. We were set to concentrate on manufactured goods, we're in reality at the end of the day, the most essential piece of trade between our countries, are our food products, both primary agriculture, and of course processed foods as well."

He says it is important for the U.S. and Mexico to be mindful of these successes as they address specific trade challenges and establish future policies for agricultural trade.

Source: USMEF