6.3 Federal Domestic Policies Affecting Trade

Legislation that blocks the use of federal resources for the agricultural marketing and promotion of a United States grown agricultural product hurts our farmers. Congress should be encouraged to repeal legislation that blocks promotion of any legal agricultural products grown in the United States.

  • NASDA supports the promotion of international markets for American grown agricultural products and opposes legislative efforts that specifically exclude the ability to promote and market those products abroad.

  • FAS
    Last updated: February 09, 2012

    FAS provides valuable assistance to state departments of agriculture and agricultural producers of both bulk commodities and high valued food products in establishing and maintaining markets around the world and in promoting the sale and consumption of U.S. grown agricultural products through a variety of programs, including foreign market development, market promotion, outreach, direct credits and loan guarantees. 

    NASDA supports FAS programs aimed at meeting the objective of expanding trade for agricultural products.

    NASDA supports fully funding, at the authorized levels, both the Foreign Market Development (FMD or “Cooperator”) Program, which provides cost-share assistance to help boost U.S. agriculture exports and the Market Access Program (MAP), which helps U.S. agricultural producers, exporters, private companies and other organizations finance promotional activities overseas.

     

     

     

  • Foreign Market Development
    Last updated: February 09, 2012

    The Market Access Program authorizes funding to support partial reimbursement to private companies for qualified overseas brand promotion of U.S. agricultural products.   The policy rationale is that the promotion of brands containing U.S. agricultural products helps to boost exports of U.S. products.

    NASDA supports the objectives of the MAP and believes the federal government and the Congress should support this critical resource for agricultural producers and promote an equitable international market place for agricultural products.

     

  • Export Financing & Credit Guarantees
    Last updated: February 09, 2012

    Programs have been designed to increase or maintain U.S. agricultural exports by having a federal agency act as the guarantor of financing for sales of U.S. agricultural commodities in foreign markets.  NASDA believes that export financing and credit guarantee like GSM 102 and 103 programs are important resources for agricultural producers entering the foreign market place.

    • NASDA supports the expansion of these programs to cover transportation costs from the U.S. border to export destinations.

     

  • Export Enhancement Program
    Last updated: February 09, 2012

    The Export Enhancement Program (EEP) and similar policies became necessary because U.S. exporters faced unfair and highly subsidized competition from the European Union. Current U.S trade policy favors the elimination of export subsidies and the United States has put forth an ambitious proposal in the current round of multilateral trade negotiations to eliminate export subsidies completely with reductions phased in over a five-year period in equal annual increments.

    • NASDA supports export subsidy elimination in multilateral agreements if the implementing legislation for that agreement allows up to 50 percent of unused EEP funds to be used for related market development and promotion activities.
    • NASDA’s support for the elimination of the EEP and similar programs is contingent upon a world-wide commitment to end export subsidy practices.

    NASDA supports the promotion of international markets for American grown agricultural products and opposes legislative efforts that specifically exclude the ability to promote and market those products abroad.