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NCGA concerned about U.S. withdrawal from NAFTA

The National Corn Growers Association views the possibility of U.S. withdrawal from NAFTA as risky and potentially very detrimental to farmers.

NCGA president Lynn Chrisp of Nebraska says they’re letting the Trump Administration know how important it is for the U.S. to stay in NAFTA until the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement is ratified.

“We understand that in negotiations, every now and then an appropriate amount of pressure to come to a decision might be beneficial. But in this situation, the Congressional mood on Capitol Hill these days is just not one that can be predicted.”

After leaders from all three countries signed on to the USMCA in early December, President Trump said he planned to quickly withdraw the U.S. from NAFTA to put pressure on House Democrats to ratify the new agreement.

Congress would have six months to pass the measure if Trump follows through on his threat.

“That would start a clock certain on the time in which a new agreement would have to be in place, and it just doesn’t look like that would be a good thing to do.”

Chrisp calls Canada and Mexico vital markets for U.S. corn farmers and says both countries are too important to put at risk.