The MWFPA News Bulletin is underwritten in part by Bug Blocker Doors & Screens
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MWFPA, Others Fear Impact Of Trump's Mexico Tariffs
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MWFPA, as well as other manufacturing and agricultural interests fear the impact of retaliatory tariffs which Mexico will surely impose in response to President Trump's threat to slap tariffs on all Mexican goods - unless the country curbs illegal immigration into the U.S.
The President recently indicated that he will impose tariffs on Mexico starting at 5% on June 10 and ramping up in increments to 25% in October.
There too is a concern that the tariffs could jeopardize the chances of Congress ratifying the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
U.S. Ag Secretary Perdue met earlier this week with Mexican Agriculture Minister Víctor Manuel Villalobos about how the duties would affect ag trade between the North American neighbors.
Of the states represented by MWFPA, Mexico is food manufacturing’s second largest export customer, purchasing over $1 billion in 2018.
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The MWFPA News Bulletin is underwritten in part by Alliant Energy
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President Lifts Tariffs On Steel And Aluminum From Canada And Mexico
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President Donald Trump lifted US tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada and Mexico recently.
MWFPA President Nick George said in a statement, "The removal of these tariffs is very positive news for our members and for the consumers of canned food products."
MWFPA opposed the administration's actions when in May, 2018 the President used an obscure provision of a 1962 law to claim a trade imbalance in metals presented a national security risk to the U.S. In one of the first concrete steps he took on trade, the president l
evied a 25% tariff on steel and a 10% tariff on aluminum
f
rom Canada, Mexico and the European Union. Read the MWFPA news release
here
.
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FDA Panel Questions Safety Benefits of CBD
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Ever since Congress legalized hemp under the
2018 farm bill
, interest in the plant and its popular byproduct cannabidiol has exploded, leaving regulators scrambling to keep up. At the agency's first public meeting on potential CBD rules last Friday, FDA officials expressed doubts about its safety and health benefits.
Lowell Schiller, who leads the FDA working group on cannabidiol, questioned the logic of allowing CBD to be marketed as a dietary supplement alongside vitamins and other established products. Officials also raised concerns about oversight of CBD goods already on store shelves.
Several academics presented studies showing that many marketed CBD products like oils and e-cigarette vapors contain either no cannabidiol, far more than claimed, or a mixture of CBD and dangerous synthetic psychoactives.
Meanwhile, food companies, dietary supplement manufacturers, hemp advocates and state officials urged FDA to quickly create a legal pathway for food, drinks and supplements made with hemp-derived CBD, warning that the lack of a clear regulatory framework is stifling a promising market and potentially putting the public at risk.
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FDA To Permit "Potassium Chloride Salt" In Place Of "Potassium chloride" On Food Labels
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued draft guidance recently that would allow manufacturers to change the name of “potassium chloride” on ingredient labels to “potassium chloride salt.”
The move seeks to demystify the popular salt replacer for consumers, although industry stakeholders lobbying for a name change had hoped it would ditch the term ‘chloride’ altogether and allow the term ‘potassium salt’ (given that sodium chloride is allowed to be labeled simply as ‘salt’). Read
more
.
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IL Legislature Concludes Spring Session, Passes Budget
IL lawmakers concluded the 2019 spring legislative session passing a balanced budget and the largest capital program in state history, while authorizing legal pot, sports betting, a Chicago casino, and
job creation incentives
. This after setting the stage for voters to enact a graduated income tax.
The session went two days past the scheduled adjournment date of May 31st, but bipartisan agreements pushed some of the biggest issues through in the final hours.
Read more about the bills and actions of import to the food manufacturing industry in the
Members Only
section of our website.
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IL Raises Gas Tax To Among Highest in Nation
In an effort to balance the state budget, Illinois’ gas tax will double from 19 cents to 38 cents per gallon beginning July 1. That makes the state one of the highest in the nation for taxes at the pump. The tax will also be tied to inflation, meaning it will automatically rise in future years without lawmaker approval.
Senate Bill 1939, which hiked the motor fuel tax and vehicle registration fees, was approved by a bipartisan
83-29
vote in the IL House.
Twenty House Republicans voted for the gas tax hike, including House Republican Leader Jim Durkin.
GOP members justified that vote as part of a larger deal that included reinstating the manufacturer’s purchase credit, expanding tax incentives for data centers and eliminating Illinois’ $200 million franchise tax in 2022. Seven House Democrats voted “no” on the gas tax hike. House Speaker Mike Madigan did not vote.
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MN Lawmakers Pass Budget In Special Session
MN's Governor called a one-day special session for Friday, May 24 and, in a marathon 24-hour session, the Legislature passed the bills required to implement the state’s biennial budget.
The bipartisan budget agreement reached by the Governor and legislative leaders spends roughly $48.3 billion, a 6.2% increase over the previous biennium. About half this increase goes to E-12 education. The budget agreement does not include any new transportation or transit related taxes or fees.
Read the special legislative summary prepared by Gray, Plant, Moody in the
Members Only
section of our website.
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WI Legislators Circulate PFAS Bills
In WI, legislators are circulating differing proposals to address PFAS in the state.
PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are manufactured chemicals that are found in many everyday products, including nonstick pans, cleaning products, paints, and firefighting foam.
PFAS are also widely used in food packaging, where they provide water and grease resistance.
In coordination with Gov. Tony Evers, Sen. Mark Miller (D-Monona), Sen. Dave Hansen (D-Green Bay), Rep. Chris Taylor (D-Madison), Rep. Stausch Gruszynski (D-Green Bay), and Rep. Melissa Sargent (D-Madison) are circulating
LRB 2297
. The bill would require DNR to establish and enforce PFAS standards by rule for drinking water, groundwater, surface water, air, solid waste, beds of navigable waters, and soil and sediment if WI Department of Natural Resources (DNR) deems it harmful to human health or the environment.
Republicans Rep. John Nygren (R-Marinette) and Sen. Rob Cowles (R-Green Bay) are circulating
LRB 3306
. This bill would prohibit the use of firefighting foams that contain intentionally added PFAS in training, unless the testing facility has appropriate containment and treatment measures (as determined by DNR rule).
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WI Legislature's Budget Writing Committee Continues Work, Addresses PFAS
As we enter June,
the WI Legislature's Joint Finance Committee (JFC) continues to to take votes on the
2019-21 state budget.
Of note to food manufacturers is
the inclusion by the Committee of language to address PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) in the WI Department of Natural Resources' (DNR) budget. The JFC approved hiring two scientists who would be charged with researching water pollution, particularly from substances known as PFAS. The committee also approved a plan to spend $200,000 on determining the extent and locations of PFAS contamination in Wisconsin.
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Membership Directory Updates: It's Time to Review Your Company Information!
MWFPA has upgraded to a membership management tool that is all encompassing. Now you have the ability to register for events, pay membership dues and connect with other members by searching the member directory through
InfoHub
.
NOTE:
InfoHub
will be the source for the next printed membership directory, so please take a moment now to update your information!
The
InfoHub
is your one-stop shop for all things MWFPA. It's also our team's one-stop shop for all member data - we need your help to keep us in the loop on company changes, locations and employee updates. We've done our best to ensure the new system has accurate data, but with all new technologies comes a few glitches.
Go to Info Hub
now to create your login and review your company information for accuracy.
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Infinity Transportation Logistics, LLC
- Provides regular expedited refrigerated domestic intermodal service hauling frozen foods and other refrigerated/perishable products from Washington State and Oregon to Texas, the Midwest and East Coast using state-of-the-art 53-ft refrigerated containers built for domestic service, with return service to Washington and Oregon.
Red Lodge Label, LLC
- A national leading provider of printed products with a strong commitment to a focused set of markets, including: Healthcare, Gaming & Entertainment, Industrial and Food & Beverage.
Wisconsin & Southern Railroad
- A Class II regional railroad company operating in the southern half of the state of Wisconsin and a small portion of northeastern Illinois. A subsidiary of Watco Companies, WSOR operates 802 miles of branch and mainline track traversing a total of 21 counties in Wisconsin and Illinois, making it Wisconsin’s second largest railroad.
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Picture Perfect Weather Makes For Successful Spring Scramble
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Everyone can agree that we had a perfect day for our Annual Spring Scramble Golf Outing at Trappers Turn Golf Course in WI Dells on May 30. Despite a cloudy early morning, the day turned warm and sunny with comfortable temperatures and much camaraderie - we couldn’t have asked for a better day!
Three holes were devoted to raising money for the MWFPA Scholarship Fund and more than $2,000 was raised.
View pictures from the event at our
Facebook
page and read a recap of the event
here
.
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Mark Your Calendar: MWFPA Events You Won't Want To Miss
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September 19, 2019
:
Food Energy Forum
, Miron Construction,
1471 McMahon Drive
, Neenah, WI.
Join MWFPA, Focus on Energy and Miron Construction for a
forum designed to increase awareness of projects that could be implemented to reduce energy consumption within food manufacturing plants. Watch for further information in this newsletter and at the MWFPA
website
.
October 10, 2019
:
MWFPA Sporting Clay Challenge
,
Milford Hills Gun Club, Johnson Creek,
REGISTRATION FOR THIS EVENT IS NOW OPEN.
REGISTER HERE.
December 3 - 5, 2019:
MWFPA 115th Annual Convention and 92nd Processing Crops Conference
. Kalahari Resort & Convention Center, Wisconsin Dells, WI.
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Brian Elliott | Midwest Food Products Association | Ph: (608) 255-9946 | Fax: (608) 255-9838
Web: www.mwfpa.org
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