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Farm Bureau official pleased Mexico didn’t start food fight over tariffs

The director of research for Iowa Farm Bureau says he’s thankful Mexico didn’t start a food fight during the renegotiation of NAFTA.

David Miller tells Brownfield Mexican trade officials did not seek out agricultural products when retaliating to U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs like some other countries have.

“I’ll call it normal course relative to corn imports, and pork and beef trade with Mexico has remained solid.  So Mexico has remained a very good agricultural product importer and trade partner with us, and I think us with them.”

Speaking to Brownfield at the Iowa Farm Bureau annual meeting in Des Moines Tuesday, Miller says he wishes that would’ve been the model for other countries involved in trade disputes with the U.S.

“That it would not be moved to using food and agriculture products as the retaliatory products.”

Miller is quick to point out China did retaliate on U.S. food and ag products and that Mexico has done so in the past.  He says it’s refreshing that for the most part, the U.S., Canada and Mexico have kept food out of the tariff dispute.