Ag News: U.S. Cheese on USMCA
**The successful renegotiation of NAFTA could turn out to be a hollow victory for some of the largest U.S. cheese companies if the Trump administration doesn’t pull back its steel and aluminum tariffs on Mexico.
The U.S. levied the tariffs in May and Mexico struck back with import taxes on U.S. cheese, pork, potatoes, apples and other commodities of 20-25 percent.
Now, without word the tariffs will be lifted, the nation’s biggest cheese companies say they’re losing patience as sales continue to fall.
**As new, alternative “meat” products make their way onto grocery store shelves, National Farmers Union is encouraging federal officials to establish a definition for “meat” that fairly and consistently informs consumers about the difference between meat products from livestock and those created in a laboratory.
NFU president Roger Johnson tells the High Plains Journal, because of rapidly evolving technologies such as animal cell culture applications, we need clarification and a standard identity for ‘meat’ and related products to prevent mislabeling.
****Farmers and ranchers need the certainty of a farm bill, but Congress has yet to reach an agreement, and the current farm bill just expired.
That said, Andrew Walmsley, American Farm Bureau Federation congressional relations director, says lawmakers are making progress towards finishing the farm bill this year.
Walmsley says the farm bill needs to be finished by the end of the year before farmers feel any impacts.