January 31, 2014

US meat federation supports farm bill

The US Meat Export Federation (USMEF) strongly supports The Agricultural Act of 2014 - the farm bill that was advanced from conference committee earlier this week and approved by the House of Representatives.

"USMEF commends the farm bill conference committee for finding the common ground necessary to advance legislation that will put in place for the next five years programmes that are critical to US agriculture and the rural economy, and we thank the House of Representatives for approving the bill," said USMEF President and CEO Philip Seng.

Seng noted that the new farm bill fully funds the USDA Market Access Programme (MAP) and Foreign Market Development (FMD) programme, which represent important investments in US agricultural exports.

The farm bill also directs USDA to develop a reorganisation plan that includes a new undersecretary for trade and foreign agricultural affairs - a provision strongly supported by USMEF.