It’s NAFTA Time
As USTR Robert Lighthizer spoke with lawmakers on Capitol Hill Wednesday, NAFTA is preparing to dominate news headlines for a few weeks. Public hearings are scheduled next week and the U.S. will submit its intentions of the renegotiation efforts on July 17^th. A month later, renegotiations can begin.

Current NAFTA A Good Thing
Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts says so, and he’s traveling to Canada in August to thank the state’s top trading partner. Ricketts will head to Canada in early August, just before the NAFTA renegotiations get underway. Canada is Nebraska’s fourth-largest agricultural export market, with ag exports in 2016 estimated at $468 million.

U.S.-less TPP A Delightful Surprise for Canada
Canada will see less competition in an 11-member Trans-Pacific Partnership, according to a Canadian study released this week. The study says the U.S. withdraw from TPP cost the nation $3 billion in exports, suggesting those losses would be Canada’s gains. The study says that without the U.S. in the deal, Canada will have better access to Japan for beef, saying fruit, vegetables, and pork and poultry exports stand to make more gains, as well.

Hold up: That Vote Aint Right
They’ll try again in Arkansas to place a temporary ban on dicamba Friday. That’s after the board failed to pass the ban Tuesday, but only because they could not agree on the number of votes it takes to pass the ban. The board voted 8-6, but thought they needed nine votes in favor of the ban. Attributing the rescheduling to a procedural error, the Arkansas Plant Board announced a revote.

Birdie, Nice Shot
China will vaccinate poultry next month, in an effort to curb H7N9 avian influenzas. The bird flu doesn’t harm poultry though near as much as it does humans. More than 200-some people have died from the bird flu.

We Need Relief
The National Farmers Union is calling on USDA to enact am emergency release of CRP lands for grazing and haying. Amid drought conditions, Producers in North-Central U.S. states are running out of feed options for cattle, and selling many of them. NFU President Roger Johnson joined North Dakota Farmers Union, South Dakota Farmers Union, Minnesota Farmers Union, and Montana Farmers Union to urge USDA to release the grounds.