WASHINGTON- House Agriculture Subcommittee on Livestock and Foreign Agriculture Chairman Jim Costa of California delivered the following statement after hosting a roundtable today with USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection leaders.


“Today’s roundtable gave us the chance to sit down with dedicated USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service leaders to review their progress on a range of issues. We talked today about their work implementing the 2018 Farm Bill  to protect U.S. agriculture from pests and disease threats, and we discussed their advice on tackling invasive species like the nutria, and how to best deal with an ongoing tomato seed import issue. Also, as we look at the possibility of new trade pacts, it was good to hear from the technical experts who make sure our trading partners recognize and enforce scientifically-sound sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards in international trade.”