U.S. Senator Joni Ernst joined 36 other senators in penning a letter urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to push the Chinese government to end its ban on the sale of American poultry products. The ban was initiated in 2015 when a wild duck was confirmed to have been infected with the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influence (HPAI) and continues to be enforced today, which is a contradiction of the World Health Organization for Animal Health (OIE) standards. Ernst is a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Forestry and Nutrition and voiced her concerns in the letter to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue. “The poultry industry provides thousands of high-quality jobs in our rural communities and the reopening of the Chinese market would provide a huge boost for these rural areas,” the senators wrote. “We encourage you to remain focused on the next steps to officially reopen the Chinese market as soon as possible,” they added. The U.S. is the largest poultry producer in the world and second largest poultry meat exporter, with nearly 18 percent of its product shipped to foreign markets. Iowa ranks 9th in production of turkeys nationally, raising 11 million turkeys per year on 130 family farms. Additionally, Iowa leads the nation in the production of eggs.
