Congresswoman Tenney Leads Bipartisan Letter Urging USTR to Hold Canada Accountable for USMCA Dairy Violations

Washington, D.C. — Congresswoman Claudia Tenney (NY-24) led a bipartisan effort urging U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer to hold Canada accountable for failing to meet its dairy commitments under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The letter calls for strong enforcement actions as part of the upcoming 2026 USMCA review process.

During USMCA negotiations, Canada agreed to expand market access for U.S. dairy by creating new tariff-rate quotas (TRQs) reserved exclusively for American producers. Instead, Canada has undermined the agreement by allocating most TRQs to Canadian processors, who often have no incentive to import, rather than to retailers, restaurants, or food service providers who have the need and desire for high-quality lower-cost U.S. dairy products. 

Canada has further distorted the market by offloading artificially low-priced nonfat milk solids onto the global marketplace, putting downward pressure on prices for U.S. producers. Despite repeated U.S. challenges, Canada has refused to uphold their commitments, making the 2026 review a critical opportunity to strengthen the deal and protect American dairy producers. The letter also highlights the strong gains made with Mexico under USMCA and stresses the importance of preserving that progress.

“Upstate New York’s dairy farmers must be able to compete fairly on the global stage,” said Congresswoman Claudia Tenney. “President Trump was able to secure massive commitments from Canada on dairy under USMCA, yet Canada has spent years dodging those obligations and blocking U.S. dairy from their marketplace. Their manipulation of dairy quotas have hurt our producers and violated the letter and spirit of the agreement. As we approach the 2026 review, USTR must hold Canada accountable and secure the market access our farmers were promised. I thank President Trump for his continued commitment to our dairy farmers, and I will keep fighting to deliver fairness, enforcement, and opportunity for New York’s dairy community.”

This letter was signed by a bipartisan coalition of the following 74 members of the United States House of Representatives:

Claudia Tenney (NY-24), Suzan DelBene (WA-1), Tony Wied (WI-8), Jim Costa (CA-21), House Agriculture Committee Chairman GT Thompson (PA-15), Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee Chairman Adrian Smith (NE-3), Mark Alford (MO-4), Jodey Arrington (TX-19), Don Bacon (NE-2), James Baird (IN-4), Becca Balint (VT-AL), Jack Bergman (MI-1), Sanford Bishop (GA-2), Mike Bost (IL-12), Robert Bresnahan (PA-8), Kat Cammack (FL-3), Mike Carey (OH-15), Earl Carter (GA-1), Ben Cline (VA-6), Joe Courtney (CT-2), Henry Cuellar (TX-28), Gabe Evans (CO-8), Randy Feenstra (IA-4), Brad Finstad (MN-1), Michelle Fischbach (MN-7), Scott Fitzgerald (WI-5), Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-1), Mike Flood (NE-1), Vince Fong (CA-20), Scott Franklin (FL-18), Russ Fulcher (ID-1), Vicente Gonzalez (TX-34), Adam Gray (CA-13), Glenn Grothman (WI-6), Josh Harder (CA-9), Ashley Hinson (IA-2), Ronny Jackson (TX-13), Dusty Johnson (SD-AL), John Joyce (PA-13), Mike Kelly (PA-16), Darin LaHood (IL-16), Doug LaMalfa (CA-13), Nicholas Langworthy (NY-23), Teresa Leger Fernandez (NM-3), Tracey Mann (KS-1), Addison McDowell (NC-6), Mark Messmer (IN-8), Daniel Meuser (PA-9), Mary Miller (IL-15), Max Miller (OH-7), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-1), John Moolenaar (MI-2), Barry Moore (AL-1), Blake Moore (UT-1), Dan Newhouse (WA-4), Jimmy Panetta (CA-19), Mark Pocan (WI-2), David Rouzer (NC-7), Derek Schmidt (KS-2), Austin Scott (GA-8), Michael Simpson (ID-2), Lloyd Smucker (PA-11), Greg Stanton (AZ-4), Pete Stauber (MN-8), Elise Stefanik (NY-21), Bryan Steil (WI-1), Greg Steube (FL-17), Mike Thompson (CA-4), Thomas Tiffany (WI-7), David Valadao (CA-22), Derrick Van Orden (WI-3), Gabe Vasquez (NM-2), Tim Walberg (MI-5), and Rudy Yakym (IN-2).

In a joint statement, the bipartisan coalition of Members highlighted:

“As a bipartisan group, we remain unified in our belief that the upcoming 2026 review of USMCA represents a critical opportunity to deliver to American dairy farmers, producers, and exporters the market access that was originally promised when the agreement entered into force. USMCA raised the bar for what trade agreements could be, yet Canada has still failed to uphold its dairy commitments. This review is the appropriate mechanism to strengthen enforcement, close loopholes, and ensure that the benefits envisioned under the agreement are fully realized.” 

This letter is also supported by National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) :

“USMCA raised the standard for what a trade agreement could be and promised new opportunities for U.S. dairy farmers.“Unfortunately, the Canadian government has continued to evade its dairy trade obligations, and U.S. dairy farmers are not seeing the full benefits USMCA intended. We commend Representatives Tenney, DelBene, Wied, and Costa for championing this effort and working with the Administration to hold our trading partners accountable.”
- Gregg Doud, President and CEO, NMPF

“USMCA is the most important free trade agreement for the U.S. dairy industry and it must be renewed. But ongoing trade concerns with Canada and Mexico must also be rectified as the renewal is being considered. Collaboration between Congress and the Administration is critical to maintain the agreement’s meaningful progress and finally deliver the market access promised to U.S. dairy exporters. IDFA applauds this proactive approach by Members of Congress to help ensure that the review process results in a stronger, fairer USMCA.” 
- Michael Dykes, President and CEO, IDFA

Click here to read the full letter.

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