NAFTA ON THE AGENDA FOR IL CORN DC MEETINGS

Tricia Braid

Mar 07, 2018  |  Today's News |  ICGA |  Exports |  Legislation & Regulation

Farmer leaders from the Illinois Corn Growers Association will be making visits to all members of the Illinois congressional delegation during a legislative fly-in event next week. One item on their agenda is a letter to President Trump that asks for his support on keeping a strong North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). NAFTA remains a primary vehicle for shipping your corn to our top corn customer: Mexico. Trade Matters to IL Corn farmers. And we’ll be sure to share that message in Washington.

 

The letter to the President outlines the importance of NAFTA to our general economy. In part, it reads: “NAFTA provides the foundation for a strong North American economy that will allow us to compete – and win – against the rest of the world. Today, trade with Canada and Mexico stands at $1.3 trillion annually and supports 14 million jobs. Canada and Mexico are the biggest export destination for 37 states. Whether big or small, American manufacturers, farmers, and the services providers from across all sectors of our economy have benefited from NAFTA. For instance, from 1993 to 2016, agriculture exports to Canada and Mexico quadrupled from $8.9 billion to $38.1 billion.”