The U.S. Grains Council has been keeping an eye on recent changes in the Brazilian and Argentine governments, which are expressing their joint desires to become pro-business and pro-agricultural trade.
The two countries are the largest producers of corn in South America and have caused some in the U.S. to realize they needed to complete the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (T-TIP).
In Brazil, soybean farmer Blairo Maggi is now the new minister of agriculture.
“Maggi and other new cabinet officials, like Minister of Foreign Affairs Sen. Jose Serra, are believed to be a positive step for the country, and especially the local agriculture sector,” U.S. Grains Council Regional Director of the Western Hemisphere Marri Carrow said. “In addition, there are signs these new members of the cabinet are more likely to seek new trading agreements and tariff reliefs to help their country’s economy.”
In Argentina, new presidential policy changes are making the country’s wheat and corn exports look more and more enticing; their exports of these crops more than doubled in the first quarter.
“The new macroeconomic situation has made Argentine agricultural exports much more competitive and improved returns for local agricultural producers,” Carrow said.
The changes require U.S. farmers to take note and find ways to continue to be competitive on a worldwide scale.
“In order for the United States to remain a leader in the global agricultural trading community, we need preferential market access and to improve the U.S. transportation infrastructure,” Carrow said. “We can’t sit still while our competitors continue to produce large, bountiful harvests that are impacting our producers’ bottom lines.”
Alerts Sign-up