Talking Trade Ep. 90 - Mickeala Carter, FTI Consulting

Talking Trade

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” consultant Mickeala Carter offers insights on the next U.S. farm bill and ag export trends.

“When you’re thinking about agricultural exports and what that means for our farmers here, a lot of that now is due to U.S. ag output growing faster than domestic demand for a lot of products, and some of those products include those of importance to Wisconsin, like dairy products, meats, vegetables,” said Carter, senior director of government affairs for FTI Consulting.

She attributes a rise in international exports to rising incomes and growing populations in other countries, connectivity through the internet and more. This has come after U.S. exports in 2018 and 2019 had a “bit of a decline” related to retaliatory tariffs enacted by other countries, according to Carter.

“And so today, we’re looking at the bulk of those tariffs, which have been removed, and I think that we’re seeing those numbers climbing back up steadily,” she said.

She said other nations are increasingly interested in U.S. staples, noting exports of cranberries to Colombia have “shot up” in recent years. Wisconsin is the top cranberry-producing state in the country.

“They were getting more top chefs into Colombia, because they’re seeing their tourism go up and people wanting to experience different types of cuisines,” she said. “And I think that as tourism rises in other countries that maybe perhaps in the past weren’t known for their tourism, we’ll see more of this.”

The podcast also explores the potential for the coming federal farm bill, after the previous one was signed into law by then-President Donald Trump in 2018. The bill is typically passed every five years, so “the re-up of this particular farm bill should have been last year,” but a one-year extension delayed legislative progress, Carter explained.

“That year was up in September, and now we have some folks in Congress hoping it can be done during the lame duck session, and you have other folks who are holding out,” she said. “And a lot of it is due to the same age-old fights that happen during every farm bill.”

Carter is scheduled to speak on trade policy during an upcoming Madison International Trade Association event on Nov. 12 in Pewaukee.

Talking Trade is hosted by E.M Wasylik Associates Managing Director Ken Wasylik and M.E. Dey & Co. President and Managing Director Sandi Siegel.