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Apprehension over Trump’s 100 day action plan with China
An official with the Minnesota Farmers Union (MFU) has some apprehension about President Trump’s 100 day action plan to improve trade with China.
MFU director of outreach Bruce Miller says the Farmers Union approaches trade with the family farmer and rancher in mind.
“We don’t know what that 100 day plan is. We don’t know if it will be done in 100 days. And we want to make sure that whatever conclusions are drawn from any kind of a plan applied to trade comes back to the essential measurement of ‘is it fair trade?”
Since the action plan was announced, China has ended a 13 year ban on U.S. beef imports.
Miller tells Brownfield that doesn’t automatically mean prices for American producers will improve.
“We’re already seeing prices being pretty low for protein meats in this country, and what we don’t need to do is to continue to raise cattle for under the cost-of-production and sell it overseas.”
He says the Farmers Union will be watching every trade deal to evaluate fairness and ensure it truly benefits U.S. farmers.
Brownfield interviewed Miller during the Minnesota State Cattlemen’s Association Summer Beef Tour near Starbuck Tuesday.
Americans are becoming more and more educated as to how agriculture operates – people do not want animals raised in feedlots or barns- they want quality meat from animals raised in environments and given access to food that promotes not only the health of the animals but that of the people that consume the meat and milk from those animals. The consolidation of poultry and livestock operations into feedlots or buildings where thousands are raised at a time in stressful, unhealthy situations has not been beneficial to the farmer or the consumer. And until the mine set of agriculture changes – farmers and ranchers will continue to watch their profits go to the parts of industry removed from the land. It’s not by chance that farmers and ranchers raising their birds and animals on pasture without drugs are getting premium prices for their efforts by consumers!