“United Fresh is encouraged by the news that a revised tri-lateral agreement has been reached between the United States, Mexico and Canada. The strong relationships our members have established between these three countries have helped enable the growth of the fresh produce industry over the last quarter century.
Coming on the heels of United Fresh’s annual Washington Conference and the inaugural Global Trade Forum in which this issue was front, and center and where attendees heard directly from key U.S. negotiators, the announcement of this revised agreement highlights the importance of our continued engagement on key policy issues by those in the produce industry. United Fresh looks forward to working with Congress to achieve the swift approval of this new agreement.”
CPMA
The Canadian Produce Marketing Association (CPMA) is pleased that a new trilateral free trade agreement has been reached between Canada, Mexico and the United States. The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) will ensure that the supply chains of the fresh produce industry remain integrated benefiting both Canadian producers and consumers.
“CPMA has been active over the past 13 months to promote the ongoing free trading environment for our industry within North America,” said Les Mallard, CPMA Chair. “We are greatly appreciative of the hard work by Canadian negotiators to finalize the deal in a way that is not harmful to our sector.”
CPMA will be reviewing the details of the agreement, particularly those chapters related to sanitary and phytosanitary issues, dispute resolution, trade remedies, good regulatory practices, and competitiveness.
“CPMA looks forward to continued collaboration with Ministers Freeland and MacAulay on other key areas of trade which are focused on diversification and growth within the fresh produce industry,” said Ron Lemaire, CPMA President.
Produce Coalition for NAFTA
“On behalf of the Produce Coalition for NAFTA, we strongly commend the Trump Administration and the Trudeau Administration for reaching a significant agreement which will bring Canada into the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). We sincerely appreciate the hard work of Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo in helping to ensure that this agreement was reached. This modernized trilateral trade agreement will enhance U.S. agricultural exports and build on the success of the NAFTA agreement that was put in place in 1994. We commend U.S. Trade Ambassador Robert Lighthizer and Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs Chrystia Freeland for reaching an agreement which re-affirms and builds on the commitment to open trade in agricultural products, including fresh produce. The USMCA is a significant victory not only for agriculture but for the U.S. economy and U.S. consumers. We look forward to working with House and Senate Members to ensure ratification of this significant new trade agreement.”
PMA
Richard Owen, the vice president of Global Membership & Engagement of the Produce Marketing Association, issued the following statement regarding the conclusion of negotiations between the United States, Canada and Mexico to update the free trade agreement among the three countries:
“The members of the Produce Marketing Association are pleased that negotiators have concluded discussions on an updated United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) on trade. A single agreement is the best way to address the extensive relationships and investments in produce and floral production and sales that have developed in North America. This agreement is consistent with our overarching goals of free and fair trade and we hope that the new agreement will be quickly ratified by all three countries.
We are encouraged by the certainty that this new agreement provides to companies doing business in North America. The 6-year review and 16-year duration of the agreement gives confidence for future investment to further build and expand trade among the countries as our members work to supply consumers’ expectations of a vast range of fresh produce and floral products year-round. Some of our members sought provisions on seasonal products not included in the final agreement, and we appreciate commitments from negotiators to continue to examine opportunities to address their concerns.”
Contact:
Mary Coppola
United Fresh
Tel: 202-303-3425
mcoppola@unitedfresh.org
Allan Gordon
Canadian Produce Marketing Association
Tel: 613-226-4187 x225
agordon@cpma.ca
Produce Coalition for NAFTA
press@producecoalitionfornafta.com
Cassidy Taylor
PMA
Tel: +1 (302) 781-5852
ctaylor@pma.com