Minnesota Senator Tina Smith introduced a bipartisan bill aimed to protect meat and poultry export markets in the case of disease outbreaks. Smith says with Avian Influenza, Hoof and Mouth Disease, and African Swine Fever concerns on the horizon, ensuring markets are open and thriving will help livestock producers. “Right now, when there’s an outbreak, our trading partners can shut down exports for the whole country when that disease outbreak might not affect everybody. Our bill allows USDA to negotiate ahead of time regional agreements to protect export markets.” The bill would provide thresholds for disease activity based on regions, so the entire nation’s export activity wouldn’t be shut down.
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