Over the past year Illinois farmers feel that they have been very well behaved. We have worked diligently to once again feed the world while making several changes to help our environment, protect the safety of our consumers, and produce high quality products. In fact, America’s corn farmers have cut soil erosion forty-four percent by using innovative conservation tillage methods! As far as yields are concerned, nationwide there has been a twenty percent increase since the year 2000. We hope that you will please take our Christmas list into consideration and do whatever you can to help us make the best better in the agricultural industry. Have a Merry Christmas!
Yours Truly,
Illinois Corn
- Free trade agreements with Korea, Colombia, and Panama
Korea is currently one of the United States’ larger corn markets and a strong prospective candidate for corn co-products such as distiller’s dried grains. In 2009, the country of Korea imported over five million tons of corn from the United States. In 2008, Korea imported 184,065 tons of distiller’s dried grains. While this number may not seem very big, it is very likely that Korea will increase their imported distiller’s dried grains in the future. President Obama recognized the importance of this market and has traveled to Korea and negotiated a free trade agreement with them, which now waits in Congress for ratification. Beef and automobiles still pose some problems.
For many years Colombia has been a strong corn export market for the United States. However, over the past couple of years we have started losing Colombia exports to our toughest competitors, Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and most of the Mercosur countries. This is due to the Andean-Mercusor Trade Agreement. During the 2008-2009 year the United States exported approximately 48 million bushels of corn down from the 114 million bushels that were exported throughout the 2007-2008 year. Experts are predicting the 2009-2010 year will not be any better. The Colombia Free Trade Agreement would grant the United States Colombia’s need for 2.1 million metric tons of corn, which potential for an additional 133.8 million bushels over time. Increasing the amount of corn exported from the United States will strongly impact the Illinois economy.
The United States has already lost several trade opportunities with Panama due to delayed actions among the United States government. The market is declining significantly through imports of $463 million in 2009 to $383 million in 2010. Currently, the United States is exporting corn, soybean meal, wheat, rice, and horticultural products to Panama while importing high quality beef, frozen turkeys, sorghum, soybeans, soybean meal, crude soybean and corn oil, almost all fruit products, wheat, peanuts, whey, cotton, distilled spirits, and many other processed products. It is predicted that if the free trade agreement is passed the United States to Panama exports could increase $165 million per year until full implementation. In the pork industry specifically, it is estimated that hog prices would raise twenty cents. It is vital in today’s recovering economy that the United States Congress passes the Free Trade Agreement with Panama before it is too late.
United States farmers are extremely reliable and hardworking people. They spend their lives providing for families similar to their own all over the world. In order to allow them to continue what they do best we must allow the passage of the Korea, Panama, and Colombia free trade agreements.
Illinois State University Student
If you liked this post, check out:
No comments:
Post a Comment