CALGARY — The US agriculture industry has launched a campaign to back the Canada-US-Mexico (CUSMA) trade agreement.Forty organizations representing farmers, food producers, processors, and ranchers have formed what they call the Agricultural Coalition for USMCA — the American acronym for the three-way North American trade deal.The CBC reports the coalition hopes to convince the Trump administration of the economic benefits the deal has on rural America before making any moves to scrap it.The coalition’s campaign — which includes advertising, lobbying, and research — places a heavy emphasis on how CUSMA has boosted jobs and revenue in the US agriculture industry. It also comes at a time when the US House of Representatives recently voted 219-211 in favour of a resolution seeking to terminate the national emergency that Trump invoked in February 2025 to push tariffs on a range of Canadian imports."Collectively, our point is to make sure that our message resonates with the president. We know that he has an ear to the rural communities and farmers and agriculture," Nancy Martinez, a spokesperson for the coalition and a director of the National Corn Growers Association, said.The push to preserve the agreement has also come from the Canadian side of the border.In December, nearly 100 leaders in Canada’s agriculture and agri-food sector sent a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney expressing support for a full 16-year renewal of CUSMA. .Canada holds back on US critical minerals trade bloc before CUSMA talks.The organizations — representing a broad spectrum of farmers, ranchers, processors, exporters, and agribusinesses — said the agreement has been instrumental in fostering a stable, integrated North American agricultural market.They argued CUSMA has enabled Canadian producers to thrive by providing predictable access to their most important trading partners. Trade among the three countries under the agreement has helped triple the value of North American agriculture and agri-food trade between 2005 and 2023, reaching approximately $400 billion.The CUSMA agreement shields a large portion of Canadian and Mexican exports from some of Trump’s tariffs, but the deal is set to expire later this year, and the three countries must now decide whether to renew or renegotiate it before the July 1 deadline.What the future of the agreement looks like is currently up in the air, as Trump and other senior US officials have floated multiple options, including negotiating better terms, breaking the deal into two separate agreements, or abandoning it altogether.As it stands, any country wishing to withdraw from CUSMA must give six months’ notice.The US coalition is cautioning against leaving the agreement, saying trade with Canada and Mexico has benefited the US agricultural industry tremendously. .CUSMA renewal talks heat up after U.S. lists demands on dairy, streaming and alcohol.Canada and Mexico account for roughly one-third of the total value of US agricultural exports worldwide. Agricultural and seafood exports to Canada and Mexico generated US$149 billion in domestic economic activity in 2024, including US$36 billion in wages."US agriculture has a great and positive story to tell on the benefits of USMCA, and we do not feel that the message has been put out there as much as some of the negative messages have been," Martinez said."The economic benefits of USMCA drive investment, strengthen the competitiveness of US producers in global markets, and keep family farms, small businesses and employers in operation."Alexis Taylor, chief global policy officer of the International Fresh Produce Association, another member of the coalition, said the market access provided by CUSMA extends beyond just producers."Local grocery stores feel it, banks benefit from it and those small businesses and rural communities feel it," Taylor said.
