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The American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) commends U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack for his leadership urging Congress to renew the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) legislation. AFIA’s President and CEO Constance Cullman issued the following statement upon reading his comments:
“The animal feed and pet food industry is encouraged by Secretary Vilsack’s recognition of the importance of TPA renewal and is hopeful it is a signal that the Biden administration intends to take an active and supportive position renewing it. As trade in the animal food sector continues to grow, we applaud Secretary Vilsack for standing behind U.S. agriculture and being the first within the administration to express both the need and support for TPA renewal.”
The Trade Promotion Authority allows the U. S. trade representatives to enter trade discussions with negotiating objectives and priorities already agreed upon by Congress, which provides potential trading partners with the confidence that the U.S. Congress is likely to ratify any final agreement reached. TPA has been utilized during presidential administrations since 1974 and has only been authorized four times.
As the Biden administration has stated its focus will be on addressing domestic issues, it is unclear if it will request TPA renewal before its deadline this summer. The AFIA is working to build upon the U.S. animal food industry’s success in exporting feed, feed ingredient and pet food products to countries where there is a need and a desire for these products by encouraging TPA renewal.