IDFA took a deeper look at the trade report released earlier this month by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which estimates that the Trans-Pacific Partnership could create an additional $150 million to $300 million in annual U.S. dairy exports.

The report, “Why Trade Agreements Matter: The Case for U.S. Dairy,” outlined the strengths of the dairy sector, saying they would not be possible without strides made by industry through increased productivity, product innovation by a well-developed processing sector and a less-distortive policy environment. USDA noted the dairy industry’s achievements and highlighted that global demand growth has contributed to the quintupling of dairy exports over the past 15 years.

According to USDA, opening new markets and removing existing barriers to U.S. exports is the key to continuing this positive trend, and U.S. ratification of TPP would be an important next step. In addition to increasing dairy exports by $150 to $300 million annually, the long-term projection, according to USDA and the U.S. International Trade Commission, is that annual dairy exports would increase by $1.8 billion by 2032.

The report concluded with a complete review of specific dairy market access provisions in the TPP agreement. It also included four quantitative studies outlining the negative effects for U.S. dairy if TPP is not implemented; for example, Australia and New Zealand would gain preferential access to dairy markets and the United States would remain on the outside looking in.

For more information on U.S. dairy exports and the TPP, contact Beth Hughes, IDFA director of international affairs, at bhughes@idfa.org.

The full report can be found here.