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Mexico Retaliates with 20 Percent Tariff on U.S. Pork

5 years, 9 months ago AFBF

Mexico is retaliating against trade tariffs placed by the United States with tariff on U.S. pork. Mexico Tuesday implemented punitive tariffs starting at ten percent and escalating to 20 percent next month on unprocessed pork. The list, according to meat industry publication Meatingplace, includes a 20 percent tariff on U.S. hams and pieces of ham, as well as fresh and frozen pork legs, shoulders, and their pieces without bones. The Mexican ministry will also open a 350,000-metric-ton tariff-free quota for imports of pork legs and shoulders from other countries. Mexico is the largest export market for U.S. pork, representing nearly 25 percent of all U.S. pork exports. National Pork Producers Council President Jim Heimerl (Hi’-merle) says the tariff “eliminates our ability to compete effectively in Mexico.” In a statement, U.S. Meat Export Federation President and CEO Dan Halstrom said the action by Mexico will “negatively impact everyone in the U.S. supply chain,” along with harming Mexican consumers and “potentially open up a tremendously strong market to a whole new range of competitors.”

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Ag Economy Barometer Monthly Results

Farmers showed more optimism in the latest Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer. The May survey reading was 141, 16 points higher than April and the highest since January of last year. A rating below 100 is negative, while a rating above 100 indicates positive sentiment regarding the agriculture industry. The rise in the barometer, a sentiment index derived from a monthly survey of 400 farmers across the U.S., was driven both by producers improved view of current conditions and, especially, their more optimistic view of the future. The Index of Current Conditions rose to 132 during May, nine points higher than in April, while the Index of Future Expectations climbed to a reading of 145, 19 points higher than a month earlier. Organizers say a relaxation in trade tensions between the U.S. and China could account for some of the increase in optimism about the U.S. ag economy.

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Ernst Expresses Frustration with EPA

Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa expressed deep frustration Tuesday regarding the Environmental Protection Agency under President Donald Trump. Speaking of EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, Ernst told an energy symposium in Washington, D.C. “If the President wants to drain the swamp, he needs to take a look at his own cabinet.” Pruitt has been a target of biofuels states after granting hardship waivers to many refineries under the Renewable Fuel Standard, decreasing the amount of ethanol-based biofuels by more than one billion gallons. The Renewable Volume Obligation for the current year was set by Congress at 15 billion gallons. OPIS Biofuels points out that Pruitt “put it in writing” that he would support the RFS, but has not done so. Meanwhile, a proposal to allow year-round E15 sales, along with allowing Renewable Identification Numbers, or biofuels credits known as RINs, to be exported was apparently rejected, or at the least, delayed, by President Trump Tuesday evening. Another rumored change would allow for hardship waivers, but reallocate the displaced volume in the final RVO issued each year by the EPA.

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Trump Voters in Midwest States Losing Faith in Administration's Commitment to Renewable Fuels

New polling shows that voters across three Midwestern states are disappointed with Trump Administration decisions regarding biofuels. Released by the National Biodiesel Board this week, a survey of voters in Iowa, Missouri and Minnesota overwhelmingly say they support federal policies to encourage growth in biodiesel and renewable fuels use. Their support cut across party lines, with more than two-thirds of Republicans and nearly three-quarters of Independents saying they support U.S. efforts to boost the expansion of the biodiesel industry. In total, 73 percent of voters agreed. A substantial majority of voters in those states, including 63 percent of Independents, say EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt’s efforts to lower demand for biofuels does not reflect the President’s promise to support renewable fuels and the RFS. More than 80 percent of Republican voters in the survey said it was important to them that President Trump keep his promise to defend the RFS. Find the survey online at www.biodiesel.org/.

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Wisconsin Governor Announces Dairy Taskforce

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker Tuesday announced the formation of a task force to assist the state’s suffering dairy industry. Walker directed the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture to create the Wisconsin Dairy Task Force 2.0.  He says  the effort will enable stakeholders to come together to make recommendations needed to maintain a viable and profitable dairy industry. In statement, Walker said: "We need to work together to develop a strategy to maintain our state's legacy as the Dairy State."  The task force is similar to one developed in 1985, called the Wisconsin Dairy Task Force, which comprised of 31 individuals including dairy farmers, milk processors and allied organizations. Wisconsin is home to more dairy farms than any other state, and about 96 percent of the state's dairy farms are family owned. Wisconsin's dairy industry creates nearly 80,000 jobs and generates $43.4 billion in economic impact every year, nearly half of agriculture's total economic impact.

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USDA Extends MPP Enrollment

Dairy producers have a few more days to enroll in the Dairy Margin Protection Program. The Department of Agriculture extended the enrollment period by a week, meaning producers have now until this Friday, June 8th, to enroll. The National Milk Producers Federation and several lawmakers asked USDA to consider the enrollment extension to allow farmers additional time to enroll or adjust their existing coverage in the MPP for calendar year 2018. NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern says late spring planting in numerous dairy states made farmers unable to sit down and make a decision on risk management options. Dairy producers must select new coverage in the MPP for 2018, even if they enrolled during the previous sign-up period last fall. Coverage choices made this spring for calendar year 2018 will be retroactive to January 1, 2018. Producers can participate in either MPP or the Livestock Gross Margin program for dairy, but not both. Dairy producers are encouraged to visit their local Farm Service Agency office to learn more and enroll.

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