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Shining Light on Farm & Food Policy for 20 Years.
Tuesday, April 01, 2025
The Biden administration is having success at removing barriers to U.S. ag exports despite the lack of new tariff-reducing trade agreements, according to the U.S. Trade Representative's chief ag trade negotiator, Doug McKalip.
The Biden administration has made it clear it won't use the 14-nation Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity to negotiate lower tariffs on American ag exports, but U.S. officials insist there are plenty of non-tariff trade barriers to be resolved, and U.S. farm groups’ hopes are high as talks continue this week in San Francisco during a seventh round of negotiations.
Overall, American agricultural exports have recovered from the trade war with China that began five years ago, but many specialty crops still suffer from Chinese retaliatory tariffs.
India marked Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the White House and Capitol Hill by agreeing to cut tariffs that it imposed on some U.S. farm goods five years ago in retaliation for U.S. tariffs on Indian steel and aluminum imports, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said Thursday.
The U.S. Apple Association’s board of directors sat down with Biden administration officials last week to plead their case for their farmers. India’s crushing tariffs were a primary focus.
Commodity groups whose members depend on chlorpyrifos are desperately trying to overturn an EPA decision resulting in the loss of the long-used insecticide deemed unsafe on food crops.
Fruit and vegetable growers are debating potential options for expanding crop insurance coverage in the next farm bill, including reforms to the lightly used Whole Farm Revenue Protection policies.
A crop insurance product that allows farmers to insure their entire operation under one policy has seen ups and downs since it became available under the 2014 farm bill. Whole Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) grew out of the former Adjusted Growth Revenue and AGR-lite pilot programs that date back to 2008.
The U.S. lifted its tariffs on steel and aluminum from the European Union and negotiations are underway to do the same for Japan. Now the Biden administration needs to lift the Trump-era tariffs on steel and aluminum from India, says the U.S. Apple Association.
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai is meeting with high-level trade officials and reconvening the U.S.-India Trade Policy Forum to discuss India’s steep tariffs and other trade barriers, many of which are preventing or dampening U.S. exports of tree nuts, apples and dairy to the second-most populous nation in the world.
