WASHINGTON, DC – Earlier today, the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry held a hearing on the 2023 Farm Bill, looking specifically at trade and horticulture issues. Witnesses included Alexis Taylor, USDA Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs, Jenny Lester Moffitt, USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs, and Sarah Charles, Assistant to the Administrator at the U.S. Agency for International Development.
Ranking Member Senator John Boozman (R-AR) addressed his first question to Taylor, saying: “Rice and wheat farmers throughout the country are seriously impacted by India’s blatant WTO violations. Could you tell us a little bit about what you are doing in your partnership with Ambassador McKalip, how you’re able to take some steps to hold India accountable? Is there anything that we as a committee or as a Congress can do to be helpful in that regard? How can we make sure that this egregious over-subsidization, and those words aren’t too strong, I think everyone agrees with that, how can we hold them accountable?”
Taylor responded: “We continue to engage India in multi-lateral forums on this issue, raising questions in the WTO, and working on counter notifications in years past to bring out really what we view as the truth to their subsidization policy. I have been engaging with my team since I’ve been at USDA on this topic as I committed to you I would. We do have grave concerns and we’re looking at multiple approaches to address within the multi-lateral forum to try to bring some resolution and certainty to our rice and wheat producers who are seeing impact from these subsidies.”
Under Secretary Taylor was confirmed to her role in late December after the position was politically vacant for nearly two full years (see
USA Rice Daily, December 23, 2023).