Rep. Austin Scott Leads House Letter Urging Action on Mexican Specialty Crop Imports Ahead of USMCA Review

Washington, D.C- Today, U.S. Representative Austin Scott (GA-08) led a bipartisan group of 79 members of the U.S. House of Representatives in sending a letter to United States Trade Representative (USTR) Ambassador Jamieson Greer to emphasize the importance of fair-trade measures for the U.S. specialty crop industry.

"America's growers and producers are the best in the world. Current Mexican trade practices have flooded our markets with products that are held to a lower production standard than those produced here by American farmers. The USMCA review process gives us an opportunity to reaffirm and recommit our support for domestic agriculture and the American farmer by forcing Mexico to play by the same rules if they want to import to the United States," said Rep. Scott.

The letter urges the Administration to address the urgent crisis as unfairly traded imports from Mexico continue to undercut U.S. growers and creates a significant competitive disadvantage for American producers. The letter calls for improved trade measures, as part of the 2026 United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) review process, that protect the long-term viability of America's fruit, vegetable, and certain tree nut industries, and ensure continued access to domestically grown food.

In the letter, the Members write: "Without measures to restore competitive balance, specialty crop production will increasingly move to foreign countries. We urge you to evaluate trade actions that can safeguard U.S. growers from unfair pressures from Mexico. This work is essential to maintaining U.S. competitiveness in the specialty crop sector and to ensuring Americans continue to have access to high-quality, domestically grown food-an issue fundamental to our national security."

Read the full letter here.

The following state, regional, and national organizations have endorsed the letter:

American Farm Bureau Federation

Alabama Farmers Federation

California Table Grape Commission

Florida Blueberry Growers Association

Florida Farm Bureau Federation

Florida Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association

Florida Tomato Exchange

Georgia Agribusiness Council

Georgia Berry Exchange

Georgia Blueberry Commission

Georgia Farm Bureau

Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association

Georgia Pecan Growers Association

Georgia Watermelon Association

Michigan Asparagus

Michigan Vegetable Council

Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation

National Onion Association

National Pecan Federation

North Carolina Sweetpotato Commission

Oklahoma Pecan Growers Association

South Carolina Small Fruit Association

Southeastern Pecan Growers Association

Texas Pecan Growers Association

Vidalia Onion Business Council

Washington Red Raspberry Commission

Western Pecan Growers Association