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McKinney says dairy trade wins could just be the first
The former USDA Under Secretary of trade says wins for dairy in recent weeks could set the stage for enforcement efforts in trade deals.
Ted McKinney, now head of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, tells Brownfield a federal court protecting gruyere cheese as a generic name could crossover for other common foods Europeans want to protect, “It so vintage EU in their desire to protect and abscond with their names—that name came here decades if not centuries ago,” he says.
And he says the USMCA panel decision on Canada’s dairy quotas is a win for enforcement mechanisms, “It’s another indication that USMCA can work,” he says.
McKinney was the first to serve in the trade undersecretary position, created in the 2014 Farm Bill, and he says having it still unfilled is hurting continued ag trade progress, “You can solve problems, enhance trade two ways, by simply showing up and it has helped enormously,” he says. “We’re slipping on that.”
McKinney was a featured speaker at this week’s Michigan Agri-Business Association’s Winter Conference in Lansing, attended by Brownfield.
