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Hoosier dairy farmers remain hopeful additional markets will open, despite a surplus of milk at home.
Brock Turner/WFIU-WTIU NewsThe Indiana Farm Bureau says farmers aren’t the only ones who will benefit from a new trade deal with Mexico and Canada.
The new United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement would replace the North American Free Trade Agreement.
Among other things, it could give U.S. farmers better access to the Canadian dairy market in a year where Indiana farmers have been especially hard hit.
Bob White is the Director of National Government Relations for the Indiana Farm Bureau.
He says the new agreement is important for a number of Hoosiers, including small business owners and those who work in agriculture and manufacturing.
"Canada is our number one trading partner followed by Mexico," White says. "So it’s important for Indiana to get this thing going and done."
Congress still has to approve the deal and industry experts say securing new markets will take time.
Even if the deal does pass, it likely won’t alleviate all market pressure felt from tariffs.
President Trump says steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada and Mexico will remain in place for the foreseeable future, leading both Mexico and Canada to retaliate with tariffs of their own.
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