Wisconsin relied on NAFTA for 2016 exports

Nearly half of Wisconsin’s dairy, fruit and vegetable exports went to Canada and Mexico last year, raising concerns amid the North American Free Trade Agreement’s uncertain future.

Wisconsin Public Radio reports that the American Farm Bureau also found that almost 90 percent of live animal exports last year when to NAFTA partners.

Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation president Jim Holte says the numbers indicate how crucial trade is to the agriculture industry.

But President Donald Trump has threatened to pull out of NAFTA if Canada and Mexico don’t agree to terms that are more favorable for the United States.

Brian Gould is an associate professor of agricultural and applied economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He says Wisconsin producers could be devastated if they lose export sales to Canada and Mexico.