<html xmlns:v="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns:m="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/2004/12/omml" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40">
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=us-ascii">
<meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 15 (filtered medium)">
<!--[if !mso]><style>v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
.shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
</style><![endif]--><style><!--
/* Font Definitions */
@font-face
{font-family:"Cambria Math";
panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4;}
@font-face
{font-family:Calibri;
panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4;}
@font-face
{font-family:Verdana;
panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4;}
@font-face
{font-family:"Arial Black";
panose-1:2 11 10 4 2 1 2 2 2 4;}
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;}
a:link, span.MsoHyperlink
{mso-style-priority:99;
color:blue;
text-decoration:underline;}
a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed
{mso-style-priority:99;
color:purple;
text-decoration:underline;}
p.msonormal0, li.msonormal0, div.msonormal0
{mso-style-name:msonormal;
mso-margin-top-alt:auto;
margin-right:0in;
mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
margin-left:0in;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;}
p.msonormal00, li.msonormal00, div.msonormal00
{mso-style-name:msonormal0;
margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;}
p.xmsonormal, li.xmsonormal, div.xmsonormal
{mso-style-name:xmsonormal;
margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;}
p.msochpdefault, li.msochpdefault, div.msochpdefault
{mso-style-name:msochpdefault;
mso-margin-top-alt:auto;
margin-right:0in;
mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
margin-left:0in;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;}
span.emailstyle24
{mso-style-name:emailstyle24;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
color:windowtext;}
span.emailstyle25
{mso-style-name:emailstyle25;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
color:windowtext;}
span.xsl-translate
{mso-style-name:xsl-translate;}
span.EmailStyle240
{mso-style-type:personal;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
color:windowtext;}
span.EmailStyle250
{mso-style-type:personal;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
color:windowtext;}
span.EmailStyle26
{mso-style-type:personal-reply;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
color:windowtext;}
.MsoChpDefault
{mso-style-type:export-only;
font-size:10.0pt;}
@page WordSection1
{size:8.5in 11.0in;
margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in;}
div.WordSection1
{page:WordSection1;}
--></style><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapedefaults v:ext="edit" spidmax="1026" />
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapelayout v:ext="edit">
<o:idmap v:ext="edit" data="1" />
</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]-->
</head>
<body lang="EN-US" link="blue" vlink="purple">
<div class="WordSection1">
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt">From yesterday: <o:p></o:p></p>
<table class="MsoNormalTable" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="100%" style="width:100.0%;border:dashed #BBBBBB 1.0pt">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td width="100%" style="width:100.0%;border:dashed #BBBBBB 1.0pt;padding:0in 0in 0in 0in">
<div align="center">
<table class="MsoNormalTable" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="680" style="width:510.0pt;border:dashed #BBBBBB 1.0pt">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td width="680" style="width:510.0pt;border:dashed #BBBBBB 1.0pt;padding:0in 0in 0in 0in">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:black"><img width="253" height="92" style="width:2.6354in;height:.9583in" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image002.jpg@01D45970.CDC18CD0" alt="https://meltwater-apps-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/images/57f411699c4429f8a61f5f8b/blobid0_1521580998622.jpg"></span></b><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="right" style="text-align:right"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:black"> </span></b><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="right" style="text-align:right"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:black">Contact: </span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:black">Chris Palmquist, 712-242-6090</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="right" style="text-align:right"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"><a href="mailto:cpalmquist@iatp.org">cpalmquist@iatp.org</a><a href="mailto:cpalmquist@iatp.org"><br>
</a></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:black">October 1, 2018<br>
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE<br>
<br>
USMCA FALLS FLAT FOR FARMERS, FOOD ADVOCATES<br>
</span></b><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:black">The reworked agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada neglects the demands of farm groups</span></i><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:8.0pt"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:black">MINNEAPOLIS—In response to the release of the text of a "New NAFTA," now called the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) between
the three North American nations, IATP Executive Director Juliette Majot issued the following statement: <br>
<br>
<i>"The reworked NAFTA agreement entrenches </i></span><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black">agribusiness control over supply chains, seeks to streamline approval and trade of controversial agricultural biotechnology products, fails to protect consumers’
right to know what’s in their food and where it is produced, and worsens the devastating impacts of climate change.</span></i><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black">IATP and our allies in farming communities in the United States, Canada and Mexico have demanded a different kind of trade deal for decades. We want trade rules
that support strong, sustainable and fair food systems and rural economies</span></i><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt">. <br>
<br>
This reworked agreement achieves none of this.</span></i><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt">One of the key sticking points was the U.S. demand that <span style="color:black">Canada</span> <span style="color:black">dismantle </span>its <span style="color:black">successful dairy supply management
progra</span>m. The Canadian government has agreed to end certain restrictions on dairy imports and grant additional market access for U.S. dairy. These concessions will weaken the Canadian system with no clear benefit for U.S. dairy farmers, especially the
small, family farms bearing the brunt of the current crisis. <br>
<br>
<span style="color:black">The U.S. dairy crisis </span>stems from<span style="color:black"> massive oversupply </span>produced through<span style="color:black"> mega-sized dairy operations</span> where dairy farmers continue to suffer from prices below the
cost of production. In Canada, the supply management system has kept a majority of dairy farms in the hands of family farmers, without reliance on public subsidies. <span style="color:black">Trade agreements and the </span>U.S. <span style="color:black">Farm
Bill </span>should <span style="color:black">prioritize local production and rural livelihoods. Weakening Canada’s successful supply management program will do nothing to achieve those goals.</span></span></i><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black"> </span></i><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt">Rather than doubling down on policies already proven unsuccessful, the U.S. should be negotiating for Mexico and <span style="color:black">Canada to </span>stop opposing<span style="color:black"> Country
of Origin Labeling (COOL) for meat. COOL would restore consumers’ right to know where their food is produced and help U.S. ranchers and food workers bargain for fair prices and wages in a struggling agricultural economy. Instead, new language in the text requires
that measures like COOL be the least trade restrictive possible, rather than the most effective to satisfy public interest. <br>
</span></span></i><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black">The </span></i><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt">reworked <span style="color:black">agreement squandered key opportunities to address agricultural dumping across borders and to reform NAFTA's enforcement system.
This enforcement system sustains</span> <span style="color:black">oil</span>,<span style="color:black"> gas and other industr</span>y<span style="color:black"> </span>challenges to governmental <span style="color:black">environment and climate policies in corporate-friendly
forums</span> where they <span style="color:black">seek billions of dollars in damages for claimed lost profits. While we welcome the exclusion of Canadian firms from this unjust mechanism, it leaves Mexican and U.S. energy and climate policies vulnerable
to future legal challenges.</span></span></i><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black"> </span></i><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt">Any <span style="color:black">agreement </span>will ultimately be<span style="color:black"> judged on whether it </span>contributes<span style="color:black"> to fair and sustainable outcomes for the people
of each country.</span></span></i><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></i><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black">Up to now, </span></i><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt">IATP and other trade watchdogs have had to rely on <span style="color:black">bits and pieces of information </span>about the actual text
of NAFTA <span style="color:black">and the wish lists submitted by hundreds of corporations, </span>which together<span style="color:black"> pointed to a deal based on the rejected Trans-Pacific Partnership. We will </span>examine<span style="color:black"> the
newly released text in detail and </span>provide <span style="color:black">analyses on the </span>ramifications<span style="color:black"> of this deal for emerging food technologies, food labels that truly inform consumers and the </span>rules we need to protect<span style="color:black"> our
soil, waterways and public health."</span></span></i><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:8.0pt"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:black"><br>
##################</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:8.0pt"><span style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:black">Based in Minneapolis with offices in Washington, D.C., and Berlin, Germany, the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy works locally
and globally at the intersection of policy and practice to ensure fair and sustainable food, farm and trade systems.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:11.75pt"> <o:p></o:p></p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial Black",sans-serif">Chris Palmquist<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">Media Coordinator<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><a href="mailto:cpalmquist@iatp.org"><span style="color:#0563C1">cpalmquist@iatp.org</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">712-242-6090 (c)
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
</body>
</html>