USTR Chief Ag Negotiator Spends Work Day In Missouri Rice Country

Missouri, September 17, 2004 — Ambassador Allen F. Johnson, the U.S. chief agriculture negotiator, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, spent a hands-on rice day in Missouri on September 17, which included helping out with harvest on a farm.

In his role at USTR, Johnson conducts critical trade negotiations and enforces trade agreements on behalf of U.S. agriculture. He holds farm work days and meets regularly with agricultural groups to hear firsthand the top concerns of farmers and agribusinesses.

In Missouri, the ambassador saw rice from harvest through milling and shipping, and spent time talking to farmers and millers throughout the day. He was accompanied by Sen. Jim Talent (R-Mo.), who serves on the Senate Agriculture Committee.

“International trade is essential to the profitability of rice farmers and millers. We appreciate this opportunity to meet with Ambassador Johnson and to personally express our thanks for his work on behalf of U.S. rice,” said Paul T. Combs, a rice farmer from Kennett who serves on the USA Rice Federation’s board of directors and trade policy committee. “There’s no substitute for face-to-face discussion on important issues.”

The threat to market access for U.S. rice in the European Union is a recent trade concern for rice farmers and millers. The United States exported just under 330,000 metric tons of rice to the EU in 2003, primarily Southern long grain brown and brown parboiled rice. On July 19, the EU’s Agriculture Council approved a change in duties on rice imports that undermines an existing trade agreement. This action threatens a cash market for U.S. brown rice that has averaged just over $90 million annually in the last five years.

“We depend on USTR for trade agreement enforcement as well as negotiation. It’s good to know Ambassador Johnson is working on our behalf, whether it’s the EU issue or any other market barrier to the sale of our rice,” said Combs.

The ambassador began the day with a mill tour of Riceland Foods Inc. at the New Madrid County Port in Marston. Manager Ed Williams and Bill Reed, vice president for public affairs, conducted the tour of the mill and the facility’s packaging and shipping operations. Mississippi river access positions the mill well for export shipments, while interstate highway and rail access serve domestic shipments, Williams said.

Area rice farmers met with Johnson and Talent at a town hall meeting and lunch in Dexter. Johnson and Talent pitched in to help out with rice harvest at David Haggard’s farm in Steele.

The ambassador also was accompanied in Missouri by USA Rice Federation staff members Bob Cummings, international policy vice president, and Ben Noble, government affairs vice president.

Johnson grew up in Iowa working on soybean, corn, cattle, hog, and chicken farms. He also worked at grain elevators and feed and seed dealers, as well as building grain bins and farm equipment. His family still lives in rural Iowa.

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Contact:
Patricia Alderson
(703) 236-1472
talderson@usarice.com