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Coalition Pushes for Action on Colombia and Panama FTAs

A coalition of U.S. agricultural and food organizations is urging President Obama to direct U.S. negotiators to move forward with efforts to finalize free trade agreements with Colombia and Panama. In a letter the coalition asked that FTAs be finalized and that implementing legislation be submitted to Congress as soon as possible. The national legislatures of Colombia and Panama already have approved the trade pacts.

The coalition wrote, "Four years of trade benefits for U.S. farmers, ranchers and food processors have now been forfeited by our inaction on these agreements, and competitor countries have taken advantage of this lapse to grab U.S. market shares. It is time to bring this situation to an end."

The coalition pointed out that the agreements will provide important new market access to U.S. food and agricultural exports, which, in turn, will create U.S. jobs and strengthen rural economies. Many U.S. food and agricultural products will become eligible for duty-free treatment in Colombia and Panama as soon as the agreements are approved, and virtually all will receive duty-free treatment over specified phase-in periods.