Farmers for Free Trade, a bipartisan coalition supported by ag commodity groups from across the agricultural industry, announced the Motorcade for Trade tour, an 11-state, 3,500-mile RV tour across the country in support of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. The initial two-week leg of the tour, which will take place over the April Congressional recess, will include stops across the Midwest at family farms, coffee shops, ag equipment dealers, small businesses, and more.
Events along the tour will highlight American farmer’s reliance on trade with Canada and Mexico, which supports millions of jobs and nearly $40 billion in American exports each year. Several stops will include meetings with member of Congress who will be considering the USMCA agreement.
“This tour will provide an on-the-ground, up-close look at how American agriculture needs trade with Canada and Mexico to survive,” said Angela Hofmann, co-founder of Farmers for Free Trade. “Especially right now, American farmers are looking for a win that provides them certainty and predictability that their exports will find open markets across North America. USMCA will provide that win. To help reinforce for Members of Congress how important trade with Canada and Mexico is we are going to get out on the farms in their district and talk to the men and women whose livelihoods are on the line.”
The Motorcade for Trade will be led by a 25 foot RV that prominently displays key facts and messages on the importance of agricultural trade with Mexico and Canada. Each stop on the tour will feature the RV. Meetings and events will include local farmers and producers, members of Congress, state ag secretaries, former members of Congress, local officeholders and more. Local statistics on the importance of trade with Canada and Mexico will also be distributed at all stops along the tour.
The tour will kick off at Kreider Farms in Manheim, Pennsylvania on Friday, April 12th at 9:00 AM. The current list of tour stops follows:
- Lancaster County, Pennsylvania — Friday, April 12th — Kreider Farms, Manheim, PA
- Utica, New York — Saturday, April 13th — DiNitto Farms, Marcy, NY
- Buffalo, New York — Saturday, April 13th — Event on cross border trade — Location TBD
- Canton/Massillon, Ohio — Monday, April 15th — Klick’s Cattle Company, Massillon, OH
- Cass City, Michigan — Tuesday, April 16th — Milligan Farms, Cass City, MI
- Fair Oaks, Indiana — Wednesday, April 17th — Location TBD
- Woodstock, Illinois — Thursday, April 18th — Location TBD
- La Crosse, Wisconsin — Tuesday, April 23rd — Location TBD
- Iowa — Wednesday, April 24th — Location TBD
- Minnesota — Thursday, April 25th — Location TBD
- North Dakota — Friday, April 26th — Appert Farms, Hazelton, ND
- Billings, Montana – Friday, April 26th — Erickson Farm/Gooseneck Land and Cattle, Broadview, MT
The tour will also include numerous other stops at coffee shops, small businesses dependent on trade and media availabilities. Stops will happen in a total of 11 states that include: Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota and Montana.
To follow the tour on social media follow @farmersfortrade on Twitter or Farmers for Trade on Facebook. Also look for #MotorcadeForTrade and #USMCA for regular updates from the road. You can also find tour stops and other information on their website.
