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Senate confirms Alexis Taylor

The U.S. Senate has confirmed Alexis Taylor as USDA’s Under Secretary of Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs.

The Wednesday vote is drawing positive reactions from the agriculture community.   Dan Halstrom with the U.S. Meat Export Federation says the Undersecretary position is a key position for developing new markets, and Taylor has experience. “We’re very excited as we have experience with Ms. Taylor from her stint in the Foreign Ag Service in her prior life, in regulatory programs, we had experience with her in several of the foreign markets so we look forward to expanding that in her new role.”

.National Association of Wheat Growers CEO Chandler Goule says the agriculture industry will benefit immensely from her expertise.  Goule says Taylor is a widely recognized leader in agriculture policy and has the domestic and international experience to help navigate U.S. agriculture through growing global changes and help expand markets for U.S. agricultural products.

U.S.Wheat President Vince Peterson says after serving as Agriculture Director in Oregon, Taylor understands just how important it is to maintain a strong promotional effort in export markets.

Ethan Lane with the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association says his group has worked closely with Taylor in her previous roles at USDA and on Capitol Hill, and she is a proven advocate for farmers and ranchers. Lane says NCBA looks forward to partnering with Taylor to open new markets to American beef and help U.S. cattle producers see even more benefits from trade.

Jim Mulhern with National Milk Producers Federation says Taylor’s dedication and experience make her the perfect choice to serve American dairy producers and cooperatives’ goals of expanding access to international markets.  He says the dairy sector looks forward to working together on export opportunities included in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework and other trade initiatives, ensuring USMCA is fully and fairly implemented, and tackling barriers to U.S. dairy exports.

Chuck Grassley from Iowa was one of the Senators pushing for a confirmation vote before Congress goes home.  He says the confirmation of Alexis Taylor is a step in the right direction, and it will be helpful to have a strong voice at USDA advocating for Iowa farmers who could be devastated by Mexico’s move to ban genetically modified corn.  Grassley says he looks forward to working with her on this and other trade issues.

So far, the Senate has not voted on the nomination of Doug McKalip as Chief Agricultural Negotiator for the U.S. Trade Representative’s office.

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