American Farm Bureau President Bob Stallman met with House and Senate agriculture committee leaders asking them to support a new aggressive trade agreement.
The trade agreement would export American goods to Colombia, Korea and Panama, bringing in $3 billion for the struggling agriculture industry.
“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 an agricultural trade agenda. The drop in U.S. agricultural exports from 2008 to 2009 is estimated to have cost roughly 160,000 American jobs in the production, processing and transportation sectors.â€
Stallman also added that the agreement would help reach President Obama’s goal to double exports in the next five years.
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