AgNet Online

Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer today announced the appointment of members to the Agricultural Policy Advisory Committee for Trade, including Mike Stuart with the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association.

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The Bush administration is urging Congress to ratify the Colombia Free Trade Agreement that was negotiated in 2006. USDA officials say it would be good for agriculture - including grains, meat, cotton, peanuts and specialty crops.

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Alabama Commissioner of Agriculture Ron Sparks recently returned from the Eastern European Country of Ukraine. Commissioner Sparks led the first American trade mission to participate in a food based trade show in Ukraine. The trade mission included three Alabama poultry related companies and the trade show component showcased six Alabama food product companies and four additional Southern based food product companies.

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At the USDA Agricultural Outlook Forum, last week, Undersecretary Mark Keenum announced that US agricultural exports are now expected to hit another record with growth of nearly 20 percent compared to last year.

High-value product exports such as fresh and processed fruits and vegetables, combined with animal products are forecast to rise a combined $3.5 billion in 2008 to record levels.

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Agricultural products totaled nearly 90 billion dollars in 2007 – up 27 percent from 2006, and Alabama agricultural commissioner Ron Sparks has been doing his part to keep those exports growing.

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New Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer says he’s willing to listen to a proposal being floated by US and Mexican sugar producers that would put some controls back on sugar and corn syrup trade between the two countries, controls that were lifted this year as the last part of the North American Free Trade Agreement went into effect.

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Opening new international markets for Georgia products is a priority for former state legislator and current deputy commissioner of agriculture Terry Coleman who talked with specialty crop producers about the potential at the recent SE Fruit and Vegetable conference in Savannah.

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FEBRUARY 4TH IS THE DEADLINE - HAVE YOU RETURNED YOUR QUESTIONNAIRE YET?

USDA Undersecretary Mark Keenum and his counterparts in Mexico recently discussed talk of US and Mexican sugar producers proposing new rules on trade and exports and agreed that it would jeopardize NAFTA if commodity groups start making their own managed trade agreements.

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Fourteen years after the North American Free Trade Agreement was signed it has been fully implemented.

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Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles Bronson talks about ta report released recently by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, intended to help those in agribusiness assess the viability of exporting their commodities and products to India.

To learn more about the report, visit http://www.florida-agriculture.com/news/09-10-07.htm
on the web.

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Acting Agriculture Secretary Chuck Conner is deeply disappointed with a World Trade Organization panel this week that the U.S. has made insufficient reforms to its cotton subsidies in response to a Brazilian challenge.

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Trade was on the minds of Georgia Cotton Commission members who were in Washington DC recently.

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Despite the flexibility shown by the U.S. and the European Union, talks aimed at making progress in the Doha Round collapsed Thursday in Potsdam, Germany, according to U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab and U.S. Ag Secretary Mike Johanns, who cited inflexibility on the part of India and Brazil as the reason.

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USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is proposing to allow the importation of commercial shipments of fresh blueberries from South Africa and Uruguay.

Notice of this proposed rule was published in the June 5 Federal Register and comments are being accepted for consideration until July 20.

To submit a comments on line, go to the Federal eRulemaking portal at http://www.regulations.gov, select “Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service” from the agency drop-down menu; then click on “Submit.” In the Docket ID column, select APHIS-2007-0061 to submit or view public comments and to view supporting and related materials available electronically.

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President Bush and Brazilian President Lula da Silva met last week and agreed to work together on promotion of biofuels and getting world trade talks back on track.

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Alabama’s commissioner of agriculture continues to aggressively seek new markets for Alabama products.

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Commissioner Ron Sparks has announced the opening of the Alabama India Trade Development Center in New Delhi, India to seek new opportunities for sales of Alabama products to India.

Read press release from Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries.

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Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns says US agriculture is in great financial shape and he is looking forward to a great year.

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Several specialty crops, fruits and vegetables are on the list of commodities that will benefit from the recently negotiated Panama trade agreement.
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Despite a disappointing year in global trade talks, the director general of the WTO says there is hope the round could be restarted in early 2007.
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THE TRADE AGENDA FOR AGRICULTURE WILL LOOK A BIT DIFFERENT WHEN THE DEMOCRATS TAKE CONTROL OF THE HOUSE AND THE SENATE IN 2007.
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Trade agreements, negotiations and concerns will continue to be a focus of the sugar industry as a new congress takes over next year.

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EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson met with administration officials and members of congress last week, including Senate Ag Committee Chairman Saxby Chambliss of Georgia. Report (1:00 wma)

The WTO has agreed to hear another challenge by Brazil to the US cotton program. Report (:45 wma)

The collapse of the WTO Doha Round will likely mean more challenges to U.S. farm programs, like the successful one last year by Brazil with the cotton program, and no agreement by the end of this year means Trade Promotion Authority will expire before an agreement could reach Congress.
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