AFBF Supports Export Efforts

American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) President Bob Stallman is urging members of the Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee to take the lead in achieving President Barack Obama’s goal, as outlined in the State of the Union address, of doubling U.S. exports over the next five years, AFBF said.

Stallman urged the committee leaders to help the U.S. achieve the president’s goal for increasing trade by expediting congressional passage of the pending Colombia, Panama and Korea free trade agreements. Stallman said passage of these agreements is critical at this time because many other countries are negotiating bilateral and regional trade agreements that are reducing U.S. agriculture’s competitiveness and market share around the world.

“About 25 percent of the total volume of U.S. farm production is exported, and many U.S. commodities have a much higher dependence on trade,” Stallman said. “The positive impact of exports will be diminished as long as the United States is not moving forward with our own agricultural trade agenda.”

Stallman said the drop in U.S. ag exports from 2008 to 2009 is estimated to have cost roughly 160,000 American jobs in the production, processing and transportation sectors. The Colombia, Panama and Korea free trade agreements combined represent almost $3 billion in additional U.S. agricultural exports, according to Farm Bureau estimates.