Over 40 ag groups applauded the Senate Finance Committee for holding a hearing Thursday to highlight the importance of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement to the U.S. economy and emphasizing the need to renew the trade deal.

“Today’s hearing made clear that USMCA is vital to the U.S. economy and an important economic engine for rural America,” said Bryan Goodman, a spokesman for the Agricultural Coalition for the United-States-Mexico-Canda Agreement. “Renewing the agreement builds on the president’s success, and we encourage its extension due to the vast benefits to U.S. agriculture.”

Former House Ways and Means Chair Kevin Brady, who was influential in shaping USMCA during the first Trump administration, testified and emphasized the agreement’s importance.

“If your country was a successful company, and America is, and you had a business partner that was your largest customer by far, your biggest investor and most important supplier, would you scrap that partnership or strengthen it, especially as China prepares to pounce,” Brady asked during his testimony. “If American wants to win, and we do, we would strengthen it, improve it, preserve the special design that works and extend it for the longest term possible to keep winning.”

The hearing comes as a key deadline for renewing USMCA approaches. Under the agreement, leaders of all three nations must begin a formal review by July 2026 to determine whether to renew the agreement. If renewed, the agreement would remain in effect for an additional 16 years, with another review scheduled in 2032. If the countries fail to reach an agreement and move to terminate, USMCA will expire in 2036. The review could also enter a period of annual consultations with no clear path forward, creating significant uncertainty for the farm economy.

The Trump administration has acknowledged that USMCA has been successful to a certain degree, though it has indicated the renewal of the agreement is not guaranteed.

USMCA was signed by leaders from the United States, Mexico and Canada in 2018 during President Trump’s first term and was implemented in 2020 to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement.

The creation of USMCA significantly increased U.S. agriculture exports to Canada and Mexico, provided more certainty between the three nations and created a mechanism for resolving trade disputes.

Ted Vander Schaaf, owner of Vander Schaaf Farms in Kuna, Idaho, testified about the importance of the USMCA for his farm while also emphasizing needed improvements to the agreement.

“Strong enforceable trade agreements are essential to the U.S. dairy industry,” Vander Schaaf said. “The United States exported approximately $9 billion in dairy products in 2025, including a record 559,000 metric tons of cheese last year through November. “Mexico and Canada account for 44% of all those exports, making USMCA essential to my livelihood and millions of jobs across rural America.”

Read more from the National Corn Growers Association here.