Pork producers happy with Japan deal

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It is not just the National Corn Growers Association that is happy the United States was able to agree to a trade deal with Japan, the National Pork Producers Council also expressed their support Monday.

As part of the deal, Japan will buy excess corn, however it will also give more market access to beef, pork, wheat, dairy products, wine and ethanol.

“We thank the Trump administration for negotiating a trade agreement with Japan, a market that represented 25 percent of total U.S. pork exports last year,” said David Herring, a pork producer from Lillington, N.C. and president of the National Pork Producers Council. “We look forward to rapid implementation of the agreement as international competitors are currently taking U.S. pork market share through more favorable access.”

In a release, the NPPC stated estimated exports to Japan will grow from $1.6 billion in 2018 to more than $2.2 billion over the next 15 years as a result of the United States pork industry getting market access in Japan as favorable as its competitors.

Overall, about 25 percent of US pork is shipped to other nations.

The deal was announced at the G7 Summit in France on Sunday. You can see how lawmakers reacted here.