Textile biggies favor trade pacts with Peru, Colombia & Panama
20 Jul '07
2 min read
The chorus of support for the pending trade agreements with Peru, Colombia, and Panama is growing by the day. Across the United States, workers, farmers, companies, and citizens from all walks of life are speaking out in favor:
• Nearly 600 companies and organizations representing every sector of the U.S. economy and every state in the union have joined the Latin America Trade Coalition, which is pressing for approval of the three agreements;
• Nearly 200 state and local chambers of commerce from all across the United States have voiced support;
• More than 50 agricultural groups representing the vast majority of U.S. farmers and ranchers are calling vigorously for Congress to approve the three agreements, with no sector of American agriculture in active opposition;
• A group of 13 associations representing the entire textile and apparel industries supply chain--from cotton growers and textile makers to apparel manufactures and retailers--has strongly endorsed the agreements with Peru and Colombia;
• The Hispanic Alliance for Free Trade--consisting of 130 of the most influential Hispanic organizations from across the country--has been actively engaged in advocacy for the pending hemispheric trade agreements;
• Seven leading environmental groups--the Center for International Environmental Law, Defenders of Wildlife, Earthjustice, Environmental Investigation Agency, Friends of the Earth, Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Sierra Club--noted in a joint statement that the "environmental provisions included in the final text of the Peru Free Trade Agreement mark a significant step forward.... The progress made on the Peru FTA is encouraging."
marketing@alchempro.com
