Agricultural Provisions of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (CRS Report for Congress)
| Release Date |
Oct. 5, 2018 |
| Report Number |
IF10996 |
| Report Type |
In Focus |
| Authors |
Jenny Hopkinson |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
Summary:
On September 30, 2018, the Trump Administration
announced an agreement with Canada and Mexico to
replace the North American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA) with the United States-Mexico-Canada
Agreement (USMCA). USMCA, if finalized, will allow
food and agriculture products to “trade more fairly,”
according to the U.S. Trade Representative, and will
expand exports of U.S. agricultural goods. While USMCA
includes provisions that address many sectors, this report
summarizes the agriculture and sanitary and phytosanitary
(SPS) provisions of the agreement. The President is
expected to sign USMCA on November 30, 2018, before
sending the agreement and implementing legislation to
Congress for approval. It must also be approved by the
governments of Canada and Mexico.
Canada and Mexico were the first- and third-leading export
markets for U.S. agriculture and food products by value in
2017, worth $20.6 billion and $18.6 billion, respectively.
Since NAFTA was signed in 1993—which eliminated most
tariffs on agricultural goods sold among the three
countries—the value of U.S. agricultural trade with its
NAFTA partners has increased. Agricultural exports rose
from $8.7 billion in 1992 to $39 billion in 2017, while
imports rose from $6.5 billion to $47 billion over the same
time period. There has been a trade deficit for agricultural
products since 2014, including an $8 billion trade deficit in
2017 that is the largest deficit since NAFTA was signed.
