By abandoning the TPP deal that was negotiated through efforts of the Obama administration, Trump stands firm to his campaign promise to dump the deal struck with 11 countries, including Japan, Canada, Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and Mexico. Trump was able to sign the order because Congress never voted on the deal, which called for lowering tariffs on U.S. products in exchange for other foreign goods entering U.S. borders.
Trump indicated he’d like to move toward renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) as leaders from Mexico are scheduled to meet with the new president in the coming weeks.
Ag industry leaders responded negatively to the decision, especially those within the beef industry. The news was greeted with even more caution considering Trump also indicated he may want to renegotiate the NAFTA.
“TPP and NAFTA have long been convenient political punching bags, but the reality is that foreign trade has been one of the greatest success stories in the long history of the U.S. beef industry,” said Tracy Brunner, president of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association.
“Fact is American cattle producers are already losing out on $400,000 in sales every day because we don’t have TPP, and since NAFTA was implemented, exports of American-produced beef to Mexico have grown by more than 750 percent. We’re especially concerned that the administration is taking these actions without any meaningful alternatives in place that would compensate for the tremendous loss that cattle producers will face without TPP or NAFTA.
“Sparking a trade war with Canada, Mexico and Asia will only lead to higher prices for American-produced beef in those markets and put our American producers at a much steeper competitive disadvantage. The fact remains that 96 percent of the world’s consumers live outside the United States, and expanding access to those consumers is the single best thing we can do to help American cattle-producing families be more successful.”
The U.S. Meat Export Federation in a statement expressed its full commitment to countries that are part of both trading deals, since those nations account for more than 60 percent of red meat exports.
“In some of these key markets, the U.S. red meat industry will remain at a serious competitive disadvantage unless meaningful market access gains are realized,” said CEO Philip Seng. “We urge the new administration to utilize all means available to return the United States to a competitive position, so that our industry can continue to serve this important international customer base and further expand our export opportunities.”
And Joel G. Newman, CEO of the American Feed Industry Association, expressed his disappointment in the move, criticizing its impact on trade and jobs.
“U.S. agriculture exports, including commercial feed, are increasing despite a global slowdown in overall trade. U.S. feed industry jobs are created and supported by overseas demand for American products,”Newman said in a statement. “Trade agreements, such as TPP, allow U.S. producers to exploit growing overseas demand. Much of this growing demand is in the Asia-Pacific region, but mounting competition and new trade agreements within that region that exclude the U.S. continue to block opportunities for the U.S. feed industry to capture this demand.
“Without TPP, the U.S. feed industry will lose more than the opportunities provided by tariff reductions. We will lose the opportunity to facilitate new trade relationships by addressing larger sanitary and phytosanitary issues, environmental protections, domestic job creation and regulatory cooperation.
"As President Trump further assesses U.S. trade relations in the Pacific Rim and any potential trade agreements going forward, we hope components of TPP beneficial to our industry will be preserved.” 
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David Cooper
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