Jun 8, 2022

U.S. Apple supports Biden choice of ag trade negotiator

President Joe Biden plans to nominate Doug McKalip as chief agricultural trade negotiator in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

The U.S. Apple Association, Falls Church, Va., applauded the administration’s choice of McKalip, who is known to the apple association and industry at large.

He has spoken at a U.S. Apple Leadership Luncheon during one of the association’s annual Capitol Hill meetings.

McKalip is a senior advisor to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on trade, plant and animal health issues, according to a U.S. Apple Association news release. He formerly had roles at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), the Natural Resources Conservation Service and in the White House Domestic Policy Council’s rural affairs office.

“Mr. McKalip knows our industry and knows our issues,” U.S. Apple President and CEO Jim Bair said in a news release. “We have been communicating with him just over the last few weeks about trade issues critical to the health of the U.S. apple industry. This is a home-run pick.

“We congratulate him and thank the president for nominating him.”

The appointment requires confirmation to the U.S. Senate.