ARLINGTON, VA – The U.S. dairy industry commended the inclusion of three export market access priorities in the farm bill trade title reauthorization legislation introduced today in the House of Representatives. The bill includes the Safeguarding American Value-added Exports (SAVE) Act – a landmark bipartisan measure to protect American producers’ ability to use common names globally, a doubling in funding for the Foreign Market Development (FMD) and Market Access Program (MAP) programs, and a balancing of international food aid authorities of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
“Protecting U.S. dairy producers’ right to use generic names to market and sell their products overseas, and increasing our investment in the MAP and FMD programs are bipartisan efforts that go hand in hand to boost American dairy’s competitive standing around the world,” said Krysta Harden, USDEC president and CEO. “It is critical that Congress continue to prioritize improving market access and stand up for American dairy farmers and manufacturers.”
Authored in the House by Reps. Dusty Johnson, R-SD, Jim Costa, D-CA, Michelle Fischbach, R-MN, and Jimmy Panetta, D-CA, and in the Senate by Sens. John Thune, R-SD, Tammy Baldwin, D-WI, Roger Marshall, R-KS, and Tina Smith, D-MN, the SAVE Act would explicitly direct USDA to work with the U.S. Trade Representative to include the protection of commonly used terms like “parmesan”, “feta” and “asiago” as a priority in international negotiations.
The legislation would also represent the first increase in funding for MAP and FMD in over 15 years. Through these two programs, the USDA Foreign Agriculture Service partners with state and regional trade groups and U.S. agricultural producers and processors to promote U.S. ag exports and build commercial markets for U.S. products and commodities. USDEC invests MAP and FMD funds to expand U.S. dairy’s presence around the world. The bill is led in the House by Reps. Dan Newhouse, R-WA, Jim Costa, D-CA, Tracey Mann, R-KS, Kim Schrier, D-WA, Ashley Hinson, R-IA, Jimmy Panetta, D-CA, Brad Finstad, R-MN, and Chellie Pingree, D-ME.
USDEC also commends the inclusion of language that enhances USDA’s participation in the decision-making process regarding global food aid programs. The farm bill text follows on the heels of a USAID
announcement that the agency is committing $200 million to the procurement and distribution of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods (RUTF) and other specialized foods to treat acute malnutrition. RUTFs utilize a variety of U.S.-produced ingredients, including milk powder, peanuts, soybean oil/soy protein, sugar and a special vitamin mix.
