National Family Farm Coalition strongly opposes the Korea-US free trade agreement
NFFC | December 2010
National Family Farm Coalition strongly opposes the Korea-US free trade agreement
The National Family Farm Coalition representing 26 grassroots farmer, rancher, and fisher
organizations, strongly opposes the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement. The Korea FTA is
based on NAFTA-style trade policies which has displaced and dispossessed farmers in the US,
Mexico, and Canada, sent jobs that support our rural communities off-shore, and benefited
agribusiness at the expense of U.S. farmers, workers, and consumers.
The renegotiated Korea FTA does not address many of the core issues that endanger American
farmers, ranchers, and fishers such as: extreme foreign investor rights and their private investor-
state enforcement, restrictions on U.S. livestock exports, and other commercial provisions. The
Korea-U.S. FTA, as it has been renegotiated, has clear winners and losers. The winners include
international financiers, who will benefit from foreign investor rights and automakers, who will
benefit from increased auto-exports. The losers in the Korea FTA are U.S. manufacturers,
workers, farmers, and consumers.
Dena Hoff, Vice-President of the National Family Farm Coalition and North American Co-Chair
of La Via Campesina, expands on the impact of the Korea FTA, “If the U.S. Congress really
cares about the U.S. rural economy and the Korean government really cares about the Korean
rural economy then they should be focusing on renegotiating past trade agreements instead of
making new trade policy based on NAFTA. It is just insanity to keep putting forward the same
trade policy and expecting a different result.”
Since the enactment of NAFTA the United States has lost 300,000 farms and millions of
Mexican farmers have lost their livelihoods. In 2007, the International Trade Commission
conducted a study that concluded the Korea FTA will result in an expansion in the U.S. global
trade deficit. Our members strongly oppose more Korea-US FTA and its job-killing, community
destroying trade policies. John Kinsman, the Secretary of the National Family Farm Coalition
and the President of Family Farm Defenders suggests an alternative path, “We should focus on
agreements of cooperation that benefit Korean and U.S. farmers, ranchers, fishers, workers, and
consumers, not on NAFTA-style trade fiascos that are a race to the bottom in prices, wages, and
environmental degradation.”
We strongly urge Congress to reject the Korea FTA, following through on their campaign
pledges to create U.S. jobs and support American producers. We feel that it is irresponsible for
the Obama administration to pursue this FTA, which President Obama denounced during his
campaign. Additionally, we urge Congress and President Obama to seize upon this opportunity
to pursue fair trade policy such as the TRADE Act that creates quality U.S. jobs and reinvests in
U.S. agriculture and manufacturing.
For more information or to speak directly to NFFC farmers and leaders, please contact NFFC at
(202) 543-5675
National Family Farm Coalition (NFFC), founded in 1986, unites and strengthens the voices
and actions of its diverse grassroots members to demand viable livelihoods for family farmers,
safe and healthy food for everyone, and economically and environmentally sound rural
communities.
