National Pork Producers Council optimistic about potential free trade negotiation
Staff Writer
Farms.com
The Trump administration’s advancements in the bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) with the Philippines are a good sign, the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) said in a
release yesterday.
TIFA acts as a trade pact between the U.S. and other countries. It aims to outline strategic frameworks that will encourage trading countries to reach a free trade agreement.
And the Philippines is a priority market for American pork producers.
“The Philippines is a large pork-consuming nation, with a fast-growing population and a burgeoning middle class,” said Jim Heimerl, NPPC president and pork producer from Johnstown, Ohio, in the release. The country “also has some of the highest food prices of any Southeast Asian nation and would benefit from a free trade agreement with the United States.”
The U.S. shipped roughly $100-million worth of pork to the Philippines last year. American sales to the Philippines would expand if tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade were removed through a free trade agreement, the release said.
“Pork is one of the most competitive U.S. export products and sustains more than 500,000 jobs in rural America,” said Heimerl.
News of a potential agreement with the Philippines comes at a good time, David Warner, the NPPC communications director, told Farms.com today.
“The Philippines are a large pork-consuming country, so I think the potential for sending more (meat) there is great,” he said. “The more we can export, the better for all pork producers. Every little bit helps, particularly when you have trade issues, like we have with China right now, which is one of our top five markets. So, if we can’t send it there, but we can send to smaller countries, it may help to offset lost export sales.”
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