News Update
March 8, 2011

Ag Secretary Highlights Benefits of U.S.-Korea Trade Agreement for U.S. Agriculture

Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack today hosted a media conference call to highlight the benefits to U.S. agriculture of the U.S.-Korea Trade Agreement (KORUS) now pending before Congress. The Obama Administration concluded trade negotiations with South Korea in December 2010, setting the stage for Congressional action. It is expected that, once ratified by Congress, the U.S.-Korea Trade Agreement will expand U.S. farm exports to South Korea by $1.8 billion, support thousands of new jobs here at home, and help to position U.S. agriculture ahead of its competitors in the lucrative Asian marketplace.

With ratification of the U.S.-Korea Trade Agreement, more than 90% of pork exports will be duty-free by 2016. Moreover, Korea’s 40% tariff on U.S. beef will be eliminated over 15 years. U.S. beef exports to Korea nearly doubled last year compared to a year earlier. Korea imported 125,000 tons of U.S. beef in 2010, a 97% increase from the year before. Read more.

AMI Says Free-Trade Agreements Are Key to U.S. Job and Economic Growth

The American Meat Institute (AMI) today emphasized the importance of three pending free-trade agreements (FTAs) to U.S. jobs and economic growth in comments to the President’s Export Council, which is meeting to discuss topics related to the National Export Initiative (NEI).

NEI is a program intended to coordinate federal efforts to double U.S. exports by the end of 2014 and to support 2 million jobs.

“Although the importance of exports is increasing in all sectors of our industry — with exports accounting for 18.9% of U.S. pork production, 19.8% of poultry production, and 9% of beef production in 2010 — U.S. meat exporters face significant, unjustified and unscientific trade barriers in overseas markets and face competitors who are aggressively seeking these new markets,” wrote J. Patrick Boyle, president and CEO of the AMI.

“The negotiation and implementation of three pending FTAs — with Korea, Panama and Colombia — will immediately jump-start the National Export Initiative and President Obama’s efforts to double U.S. exports over five years,” Boyle added. “When fully implemented, these trade agreements will produce tens of thousands of new jobs here at home and increase employment opportunities for America’s meat and poultry sector, while at the same time offering new diversified jobs for rural America.”

Boyle highlighted in his comments the results of an impact study conducted in part by AMI, which found that passage of the Korean, Colombian and Panamanian FTAs would represent an additional $2.3 billion in exports and the creation of 29,524 new jobs. Many of these jobs are in rural areas of the U.S. where prospects of true economic development are seldom presented.

The data also reveal that passage of the agreements could increase U.S. exports of beef by $1.4 billion, pork by $772 million and poultry by $102 million. The jobs resulting from this growth, both in the commodity groups and downstream, would include an estimated 18,000 jobs in the beef industry, 10,300 jobs in the pork industry and 1,200 jobs in the poultry industry.

Boyle also noted in his comments that as these free-trade agreements have stalled in Congress, our competitors have pounced at the opportunity in these markets. 

“The unfortunate reality of trade is that while we sit on our hands, our competitors are seizing market shares that could be ours and will be difficult to win back later,” Boyle added. 

“Hopefully, with the Council’s support, Congress will be able to push past the political barriers that have blocked passage of the FTAs with Korea, Panama and Colombia in the past and demonstrate that our leaders in Washington have enough faith in the determination and ingenuity of the American people to allow us the opportunity to compete fairly in these highly sought after global markets.”

To read Boyle’s comments in their entirety, click here: http://bit.ly/ecLoTF.

This morning’s meeting of the President's Export Council can be viewed via live webcast at 9:30 a.m. EST at: http://whitehouse.gov/live.

— Release by AMI.

OSU to Host Oklahoma Sustainable Agriculture Summit April 19-20

Farmers and ranchers can pick up practical tips on alternative livestock production systems by attending the April 19-20 Oklahoma Sustainable Agriculture Summit in Stillwater.

Sponsored by Oklahoma State University (OSU) Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, the summit will emphasize beef, goats and multi-species management.

“Our objective is to help producers promote healthy, well-performing livestock and a healthy, sustainable agricultural operation,” said Kefyalew Desta, assistant professor of sustainable agricultural systems with OSU’s department of plant and soil sciences.

The summit will take place at the Wes Watkins Center on OSU’s Stillwater campus, located at the corner of Hall of Fame Avenue and Washington Street. Sessions will begin at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, April 19, and finish with a bus tour that will end at approximately 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 20.

Cost is $40 per participant, which includes lunch and conference materials. To register, visit http://orangehub.okstate.edu on the Internet and click on Agricultural Conference Services.

April 19 sessions will focus on the sustainable state of Oklahoma agriculture, managing livestock health for alternative production systems, premium beef, natural beef production, goat production in Oklahoma, developing a goat marketing plan and multi-species grazing. A panel discussion about sustainability also will be featured.

Sessions will be led by Mary Penick, Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture livestock specialist, Southern Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE); Ann Wells, Kerr Center veterinarian; C.R. Freeman and Kirk Duff, owners of Premium Natural Beef; Langston University’s Terry Gibson, Oklahoma SARE; and J.J. Jones, OSU Cooperative Extension area agricultural economics specialist. Desta will serve as summit moderator.

Participants will board a bus at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday, April 20, and travel to Tulsa for an Oklahoma Quality Beef Network presentation and tours of the Tulsa Stockyards and Goat Hill Kiko’s Farm. The bus will return to Stillwater at approximately 5:30 p.m.

“OSU students may audit the summit at no charge with their official student ID card,” Desta said.

Anyone seeking additional information about the April 19-20 Oklahoma Sustainable Agriculture Summit should contact Desta by e-mail at kefyalew.desta@okstate.edu or by phone at 405-744-4667, or Janelle Malone by e-mail at janelle.malone@okstate.edu or by phone at 405-744-3669.

— Release by OSU Extension.

Bi-national Tick, Wildlife and Cattle Conference March 23-24 in Laredo

The latest research and educational information on ticks and how they affect cattle and wildlife production will be presented at a two-day conference March 23-24 at the Embassy Suites in Laredo.

“Those in the cattle business or who own/manage wildlife operations will take home specific information on tick eradication and control methods,” said Joe Paschal, Texas AgriLife Extension Service beef cattle specialist in Corpus Christi. “This two-day conference will address specific topics such as the history of the tick, the life cycle, its habitat and also give a firsthand look at the latest in current eradication efforts.”

The fever tick is a major concern to the livestock and wildlife industry, Paschal said. It can carry and transmit Babesia, a blood parasite that can kill adult cattle. Other hosts for the fever tick are horses, whitetail and other deer species, and elk.

Potential economic losses due to the cattle tick are in the millions, according to AgriLife Extension economists.

“We want to attract all stakeholders (livestock and wildlife) to this conference and build upon a concerted effort in battling movement of the fever tick,” said Tom Hairgrove, AgriLife Extension livestock systems program specialist.

The program will begin March 23 with an update on federal and state tick control efforts, followed by a presentation from Tammy Beckham, director of the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory and Foreign Animal and Zoonotic Disease Center. Beckham will discuss current activities conducted by both agencies in the U.S. and Mexico.

Afterward, Perez De Leon, U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) scientist, will give an overview of fever tick control research efforts and eradication. Kevin Varner, USDA-Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), and Dee Ellis, executive director of the Texas Animal Health Commission, will follow with discussions on current eradication efforts, expenditures and quarantine efforts in the state. Jim Gallagher, AgriLife Extension wildlife specialist in Uvalde, will conclude the day with a presentation on ticks and how they interact with wildlife operations.

On March 24,  the conference will move to Rancho Blanco, south of Laredo, which lies within the Permanent Fever Tick Quarantine Zone. Jim Mutz, former ranch manager for Rancho Blanco, will talk about real-world cattle and wildlife management inside the quarantine zone.

Other discussions will include control activities, costs and cost-share programs available for altering tick habitat, and a tour of the ranch, featuring an explanation of different control strategies.

The conference is free, but registration is requested to obtain an accurate count for meals. To register, call the AgriLife Extension office in Webb County at 956-721-2626.

— Release by AgriLife Extension.

— Compiled by Mathew Elliott, assistant editor, Angus Productions Inc.