Doug McKalip, chief agricultural negotiator in the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), offered a global trade outlook for dairy and agriculture during his closing keynote speech to dairy processors on Jan. 24 at the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) Dairy Forum at the JW Marriott in Phoenix.
“What does trade look like and what are some of the challenges we face?” McKalip asked. “What [dairy processors] do is so important that others want to disrupt it. Off the coast of Yemen, there are operatives looking to restrict trade from happening. U.S. forces have been hard at work neutralizing that. In fact, a few Special Forces members paid the ultimate price to make sure trade continues and the shipping lanes would remain open.”