Dairymen: Resolve U.S.-Mexico border dispute

Dairymen: Resolve U.S.-Mexico border dispute    The International Dairy Foods Association said Tuesday it supports the proposed cross-border trucking agreement between the United States and Mexico developed by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
   In comments filed with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, IDFA said its members need to regain full duty-free access to the U.S. dairy industry’s largest export market, Mexico.
   “This is an important step toward a solution that will put an end to the retaliation against our industry’s products,” said Clay Hough, IDFA senior group vice president and general counsel. “Not only will this resolve a longstanding dispute, but the agreement will send a clear signal to trading partners that the United States is serious about the reciprocal fulfillment of trade obligations.”
   Last year Mexico imported more than $837 million of U.S. dairy products. However, since tariffs on several American cheeses were added to Mexico’s retaliation list last August, exports of the targeted cheeses have been down 60 percent through February of this year.