FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 12, 2016
Contact: Laramie Adams
Cell: 512-922-7328
Livestock Organizations Submit TPP Letter to Congress 
Fort Worth, Texas – Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA) leaders and staff will be in Washington, D.C. this week making visits to Congressional offices to discuss the importance of passing the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement and other issues crucial to the beef industry.
“I am excited to be in Washington, D.C. with my fellow officers and other leaders of TSCRA to discuss items critically important to cattlemen and women,” said TSCRA president Richard Thorpe. “TPP will be at the top of the list of items for discussion, because TSCRA believes taking advantage of trade opportunities is crucial for the future of our industry.”
After over five years of negotiations, the United States reached a TPP agreement on Oct. 5, 2015 with many of the countries in the Pacific Rim. TSCRA has been advocating for this agreement to move forward because of the tremendous benefits it will provide for U.S. beef producers by significantly reducing tariffs on beef products.
TSCRA’s visit to Washington comes after many livestock and agricultural industry organizations submitted a letter on Monday to express support for passage of TPP. You can find the letter by clicking HERE.
“This letter stresses how important TPP is to expanding beef exports across the Pacific Rim,” said Thorpe. “This region represents approximately 40 percent of the world’s economy, including Japan – one of our biggest customers. U.S. beef trade with Japan already sits at $1.6 billion with a 38.5 percent tariff. Imagine what beef producers could do with TPP, which would reduce this tariff to 9 percent. I don’t know how we could pass up this opportunity. TSCRA looks forward to many great conversations about TPP and other issues while we are in D.C.”
Besides the U.S, the countries included in the TPP agreement are: Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. These nations encompass nearly 40 percent of the global economy. For more information on TPP, visit www.tppnow.com.
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TSCRA is a 139-year-old trade association and is the largest and oldest livestock organization based in Texas. TSCRA has more than 17,000 beef cattle operations, ranching families and businesses as members. These members represent approximately 50,000 individuals directly involved in ranching and beef production who manage 4 million head of cattle on 76 million acres of range and pasture land primarily in Texas and Oklahoma, but throughout the Southwest.