Japanese Trade Deal Provides U.S. Pork Huge Opportunities

(WASHINGTON, DC) The United States and Japan announced a trade agreement last week that once implemented, will place U.S. agricultural products back on a level playing field with international competitors. The agreement was announced at the G7 summit in France during a press conference. According to the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), the deal will likely be signed when leaders of both countries attend the U.N. General Assembly meeting in September. Dr. Dermot Hayes, an economist at Iowa State University, estimates pork exports to Japan will grow from $1.6 billion in 2018 to more than $2.2 billion over the next 15 years as a result of the United States pork industry gaining market access in Japan as favorable as its competitors.