NMPF Leads Charge to Prioritize Dairy in 2026 USMCA Review

As preparations continue for the 2026 review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), NMPF and the U.S. Dairy Export Council are advancing a coordinated strategy to ensure the agreement delivers on its promises to U.S. dairy producers.

NMPF Executive Vice President for Trade Policy and Global Affairs Shawna Morris testified before the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative at a Dec. 3 hearing, to highlight the trade pact’s importance for U.S. dairy producers and emphasize the need for the administration to address violations of USMCA dairy commitments. Morris detailed how Canada continues to manipulate dairy tariff-rate quotas and offload surplus nonfat milk solids into global markets at artificially low prices. She also pointed to Mexico’s failure to implement USMCA protections for common cheese names like “feta.”

Congress reinforced the message the same day, as a bipartisan group of 74 House members sent a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer urging the administration to address unresolved dairy issues in the USMCA review. Developed with support from NMPF, USDEC, and dairy stakeholders, the letter calls out Canada’s unfair import restrictions and global dumping practices, while pressing for full implementation of Mexico’s commitments on common cheese names.

NMPF and USDEC also took their case directly to Capitol Hill. NMPF Trade Policy Director Tony Rice participated in a pair of briefings for House Ways and Means and Senate Finance Committee staff on Dec. 9 and 10 as part of the new U.S. Agriculture Coalition for USMCA. Rice emphasized the importance of targeted improvements to the agreement, noting that 44 percent of U.S. dairy exports by value went to Mexico and Canada last year.

The progress builds on sustained engagement by NMPF and USDEC, including joint written comments submitted Oct. 31, an Aug. 5 appearance before the U.S. International Trade Commission, and multiple filings tied to the Commission’s investigation into nonfat milk solids competitiveness that will inform the administration’s approach to address Canada’s offloading of dairy proteins.

All together, these efforts reflect NMPF’s ongoing push to ensure the USMCA review strengthens the agreement, holds U.S. trading partners accountable, and delivers fair market access for American dairy producers.