Farmers criticize Trump comments on USMCA renewal
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Farmers for Free Trade, a coalition that supports open markets and free trade, expressed alarm on Wednesday after President Trump said he might not renew the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade and that the United States does not need anything from Canada or Mexico.
“Asked about the ongoing process to renew the free-trade deal between the U.S., Mexico and Canada, President Trump sounded off on Wednesday: ‘I don’t know that I’m going to renew it,'” The New York Times reported.
“‘We don’t need anything that Canada has, we don’t need anything that Mexico has, but they need everything that we have,’ Mr. Trump said in the Oval Office, adding: ‘We don’t need their cars, we don’t need their lumber, we don’t need their energy, we don’t need anything that they have,'” the Times reported.
In response, Farmers for Free Trade Board Chairman Bob Hemesath, a corn and hog farmer from northeast Iowa, said, “American farmers are rightly going to be concerned by today’s comments that the administration is not looking to renew USMCA. Failing to extend and strengthen this agreement would be a self-inflicted wound for American agriculture at the worst possible moment. U.S. agricultural exports to Canada and Mexico have grown by $20 billion since USMCA took effect, reaching $60 billion in 2024, and those two markets now buy roughly one-third of everything American farmers sell abroad. That trade supports nearly half a million American jobs and $149 billion in economic output here at home. While the agreement is not perfect, the venue for improving it is through this negotiation.
“With respect, the notion that America does not need anything from Canada does not match the reality on my farm or any farm I know. The United States imports roughly 90% of its potash, and more than 80% of those imports come from Canada. There is no substitute and no domestic supply that can replace it. Without Canadian potash, American crops simply do not get planted at full strength, and food prices rise for every American family. The Joint Review is an opportunity to extend and strengthen an agreement the president himself negotiated and that has delivered real results for rural America. Farmers across the heartland are counting on our leaders to seize this opportunity, not to walk away from our two largest and most reliable customers.”
Bryan Goodman, spokesman for the Agricultural Coalition for USMCA, said, “USMCA is one of President Trump’s signature accomplishments and has been a critical economic driver for farmers and rural communities. Administration officials have been very responsive to our calls for the renewal of USMCA with targeted improvements, and we appreciate the continued engagement on the future of this critical agreement. President Trump is a strong negotiator, and we are confident in his ability to reach a deal with Canada and Mexico that works for all three countries while meeting the needs of America’s farmers.”
The House Agriculture Committee held a hearing Wednesday on the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade, at which House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson, R-Pa.; Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., ranking member of the committee; and witnesses broadly spoke of the importance of the USMCA to American farmers and consumers.
The House Agriculture Committee Democratic staff issued a news release summarizing those comments and noted that Trump said he might not renew the agreements. Detailed coverage of that hearing will appear in Friday’s edition of The Hagstrom Report.
