Agriculture groups support NAFTA

Brownfield:
Leaders from the US food and agricultural sector have created a new coalition in support of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Americans for Farmers and Families is highlighting the impact of NAFTA on the economy and Joshua Baca, spokesperson for the coalition, says 43 million US jobs depend on trade with Canada and Mexico.

“We want to make sure that this side of the story is told.. There are a lot of stories out there about what NAFTA has or hasn’t done,” he says. “The reality for the food and agriculture sector is, NAFTA has been a huge job and economic boost for the industry. We want to be a helpful dialogue in helping policymakers across the country understand what that impact is.”
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This does not surprise me at all.  Agriculture is a seasonal business and trade in agricultural products allows groceries to keep food in the market that would otherwise not be available over an extended period of time.  As an example, the blueberry season in the US is relatively short, but you can get fresh blueberries from Mexico after the US crop has been consumed.  The same is true of other seasonal crops.  It is an example of a business for which NAFTA is a win-win.

The apparent losers in the NAFTA deal are blue state manufacturing jobs.  This is a result of oppressive taxes and regulations in blue states and union demands which are inconsistent with the market.  In red states like Texas, the manufacturing sector has prospered because of low taxes and regulations.  Texas is the leading exporting state in the US for a reason.  If the blue states would change their ways we would not have a great need to change NAFTA.  The trade deal has been a net plus for Texas.

It has also helped the produce distribution business in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas which takes the Mexican produce and fits it into its US distribution network.

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