By PHILIP BRASHER AP Farm Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Clinton administration is struggling to get farmers united behind a trade agreement with China, raising concerns among the pact's supporters about whether it will have enough congressional support.
"We give up nothing, zero, nothing in the agricultural area" under the agreement, but "that message is not out there in the countryside," Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman told the Senate Agriculture Committee on Wednesday.
The farm lobby is considered critical to getting congressional support for the trade deal, which the Agriculture Department estimates would triple sales of U.S. food to China to $3 billion annually. Administration officials say the deal hinges on Congress agreeing to end its annual reviews of China's U.S. trade status.
Despite a personal plea from Glickman, delegates to the National Farmers Union's annual convention voted narrowly earlier this week not to support the agreement.
The NFU, second-largest of the nation's general farm organizations, has normally aligned closely with Democrats on federal policy and is influential in several Plains states. Leaders of the group say members are wary of China's human rights record and trade policies and wanted to maintain solidarity with labor unions that oppose the agreement.
Many producers are also wary of the China deal because they think they were hurt by previous agreements with other countries.
"People in the country just feel that trade deals are not good," said Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., who supports the China agreement. "It couldn't be any farther from the truth."
The administration also is worried about losing support among livestock producers because China has yet to lower barriers to U.S. meat and poultry. U.S. and Chinese officials disagree over whether China is required to immediately recognize the Agriculture Department's meat inspection system.
"We are very concerned," said Peter Scher, the administration's chief negotiator on farm trade. "They have not taken the steps they need to take."
Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, said China is making it difficult for some lawmakers to support the agreement. "I hope they realize that," he said.
China has agreed to reduce tariffs on a number of farm products, including beef, pork, poultry, oranges, grapes, wine, cheese and poultry. The tariff on beef alone would drop from 45 percent to 12 percent. The administration has estimated the lower tariffs could mean an extra $2 billion sales of U.S. farm products annually.
Earlier this week, China announced that it would accept a test shipment of $6 million worth of wheat from the Pacific Northwest, the first allowed from that region in two decades. U.S. officials are pressing the Chinese to make a purchase of U.S. citrus fruit soon, as well.
Backers of the agreement say U.S. farmers risk losing the huge Chinese market to producers in other countries, including Canada, Europe and Latin America, if the agreement fails.:
