Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif)
Washington, DC– Congressional Agriculture Trade Caucus Co-Chairs Reps. Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), Adrian Smith (R-NE), Jim Costa (D-CA), and Dusty Johnson (R-SD) led 109 of their colleagues in sending a letter to Ambassador Jamieson Greer, the U.S. Trade Representative, highlighting how the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) delivers for American agriculture.
Since USMCA went into effect, overall U.S. agricultural exports to Mexico and Canada have increased by $10.7 billion and $7.6 billion respectively. The agreement’s binding provisions on technical barriers to trade, paired with its dispute settlement process, provide certainty for American agricultural producers. The Members emphasized the importance of fully enforcing the existing terms while addressing remaining barriers to U.S. agricultural products.
“USMCA was truly a landmark agreement for American Agriculture when it entered force, and its positive impact on U.S. agriculture has yet to reach its maximum benefit,” wrote the Members. “At a time when economic challenges threaten the livelihood of family farms, producers need the certainty provided under USMCA more than ever.”
“The USMCA agreement has delivered meaningful benefits for U.S. wine producers by supporting growth in Canada, our most important export market, and strengthening our competitiveness across North America,” said Robert P. “Bobby” Koch, CEO, Wine Institute. “While recent challenges persist, preserving USMCA’s framework is critical to ensuring the long-term success of the U.S. wine industry.”
“California Citrus Mutual (CCM) appreciates the Congressional Ag Trade Caucus and its bipartisan commitment to upholding USMCA’s value for California Citrus growers and U.S agriculture. Ensuring tariff-free access to two of our top markets for U.S. citrus is pivotal for our growers. Canada is a top export destination for fresh U.S. citrus – with approximately $215 million worth of exports each year. Mexico is another key export market for fresh U.S. citrus, with $93 million exported in 2024. We are grateful for Co-Chairs Reps. Adrian Smith (R-NE), Jim Costa (D-CA), Dusty Johnson (R-SD), and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) for their leadership and support.”
Gregg Doud, President and CEO, National Milk Producers Federation said, “USMCA has delivered real value for America’s dairy farmers. While several dairy compliance issues remain to be addressed in the 2026 Joint Review, the duty-free trade into Mexico that USMCA preserved has allowed U.S. dairy exporters to partner with Mexico to meet growing demand. We thank Reps. Smith, Costa, Johnson and Panetta for their leadership in highlighting the importance of preserving USMCA’s market access provisions for the U.S. agricultural industry and fine-tuning the areas that need reform.”
Krysta Harden, President and CEO, U.S. Dairy Export Council said, “Mexico and Canada are critical markets for U.S. dairy products with over 44 percent of last year’s exports destined for the two countries. USMCA has strengthened those ties with Mexico by providing certainty, clear rules, and a reliable path for growth. It is our hope that the Review will lead to just that result in our future USMCA trade with Canada as well. As dairy demand continues to rise across North America, it is vital that USMCA delivers strong trade ties and robust trade flows. USDEC strongly supports the bipartisan message coordinated by Reps. Smith, Costa, Johnson and Panetta today in support of maintaining and crucially further strengthening this important trade relationship in the 2026 Joint Review process.”
“USMCA is extremely important to America’s corn growers whose top trading partners are Canada and Mexico,” said National Corn Growers Association President Jed Bower. “The agreement provides important tools that allow unfair actions to be challenged, as the United States successfully did when Mexico banned genetically modified corn. We need this agreement to be renewed to provide stability for our farmers.”
“The USMCA has provided a strong foundation for North American trade since its negotiation under the first Trump administration. ASA appreciates Congressman Adrian Smith and members of Congress for their continued commitment to this vital agreement,” said Caleb Ragland, President of the American Soybean Association. “At a time when soybean farmers face uncertain market conditions, the USMCA offers much-needed stability and predictability in our most important export markets — helping ensure reliable access to customers, smoother movement of goods, and a rules-based system that protects U.S. agriculture.”
“The unmatched productivity of American agriculture means market access and trade relationships are critical to rural communities, and no deal is more important to the farm economy than the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement,” said John Bode, President and CEO of the Corn Refiners Association. “We are proud to stand by the leaders of the Ag Trade Caucus in their strong support for USMCA. Securing the future of this agreement is vitally important for producers and consumers across North America, and we urge the deal’s renewal during the upcoming evaluation period.”
“The National Turkey Federation is grateful for Congressional support reaffirming USMCA’s value to U.S. agriculture,” said Leslee Oden, President and CEO of National Turkey Federation. “This agreement has provided a strong foundation for North American trade, and we look forward to working with USTR to build on that success and explore opportunities that further enhance the benefits for U.S. turkey producers.”
“The USMCA has played a vital role in strengthening North American horticulture by ensuring that essential inputs move freely across our borders and giving growers the predictability they need to operate with confidence. As the agreement enters its formal review, it is critical that policymakers maintain the duty-free, integrated framework that has allowed the horticulture sector to thrive. Protecting these benefits is key to preserving the stability, affordability, and economic vitality that USMCA provides to our industry,” stated Ken Fisher, AmericanHort President & CEO.
“We thank these Members for their commitment to preserving and expanding the benefits that USMCA delivers to American agriculture and homegrown biofuels,” said Emily Skor, CEO of Growth Energy. “This agreement benefits consumers, strengthens rural communities, and enhances energy security. Growth Energy is pleased to lend our support to consistent USMCA enforcement and a level playing field for American farmers and biofuel producers.”
“NGFA applauds the Congressional Agriculture Trade Caucus’s efforts to ensure that the USMCA can continue to be one of the most successful trade agreements in our sector’s history. This landmark trade deal delivers predictable, rules-based market access that strengthens American agriculture and supports hundreds of thousands of U.S. jobs,” said Mike Seyfert, President and CEO of the National Grain and Feed Association. “As the United States undertakes this review, we must build on a success story that has benefited the grain and feed markets. NGFA strongly encourages the administration to ensure that USMCA’s core benefits are protected and expanded to keep the agriculture competitive and secure.”
“We appreciate the Caucus Co-chairs’ leadership advocating on behalf of a broad base of agricultural stakeholders supporting the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) as we move into the review next year. One of the advantages of this agreement is the enforcement mechanisms available to deal with violations that restrict free and fair trade,” said Kent Swisher, President & CEO of the North American Renderers Association (NARA). “For example, NARA is urging trade negotiators to spotlight an unfair value-added tax that Mexico is applying retroactively to imported feed ingredients such as rendered animal protein meals. It amounts to a de facto tariff that violates USMCA. Full enforcement of the existing agreement will resolve this issue.”
The Organic Produce Association (OPA) appreciates the leadership of Congressmen Adrian Smith, Jimmy Panetta, Dusty Johnson, and Jim Costa for highlighting the importance of USMCA to U.S. agriculture. USMCA serves as a critical trade agreement for organic produce, enabling U.S. growers to access top produce export markets of Mexico and Canada tariff-free, and ensuring consumer access to organic produce year-round. OPA is grateful for the broad bipartisan recognition of USMCA’s positive impacts on U.S. agriculture ahead of the Joint Review of this key trade agreement.
Read the full letter text here or below.
Dear Ambassador Greer:
As Members of Congress representing a diverse range of communities reliant on the success of agriculture, we strongly support the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) due to its positive impact and benefit to U.S. agriculture. As the Administration develops its priorities for the six-year “joint review” of USMCA, we urge you to work closely with Congress and consider the significant positive impact North American agricultural trade has on our communities. Any changes to the agreement should be carefully examined to ensure U.S. agriculture is not negatively impacted. Further, as you consider updates to the agreement, we support efforts to fully enforce the existing terms and to address the few remaining barriers impacting U.S. agriculture, such as Canada’s barriers to U.S. dairy.
This agreement provides vast benefits to our constituents, including farmers, ranchers, producers, growers, grain handlers, exporters, and the broader rural economy. The United States is the world’s largest agricultural exporter, with total agricultural exports valued at $176 billion in 2024. Over a third of these exports were destined for Mexico and Canada. Overall U.S. agricultural exports have significantly increased since implementation of USMCA, with exports to Mexico and Canada increasing by $10.7 billion and $7.6 billion respectively. For most individual U.S. agricultural products, Mexico and Canada are the largest and/or second largest export markets.
The seamless integration provided under the agriculture provisions of USMCA facilitates the flow of goods by streamlining compliance measures and harmonizing regulations. Cost savings generated by the efficiencies in USMCA directly benefit American farmers, producers, and ranchers, which helps them make a living and support their local communities. The agriculture section of the USMCA provides much needed certainty within North America through its tough and effective rules on sanitary and phytosanitary measures, agricultural biotechnology, intellectual property, and technical barriers to trade. U.S. agricultural exporters depend on the binding nature of these provisions to access our closest markets and make sales, which has directly benefitted the farmers, ranchers, and producers that we represent. Further, these rules-based, science-driven commitments set a strong example for other trading partners hoping to achieve similar access to the U.S. market.
USMCA was truly a landmark agreement for American agriculture when it entered into force, and its positive impact on U.S. agriculture has yet to reach its maximum benefit. At a time when economic challenges threaten the livelihood of family farms, producers need the certainty provided under USMCA more than ever. We appreciate your attention to the views of our constituents and look forward to working together as the 2026 Review process commences.
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