Washington, DC - U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue issued the following statement regarding the new trade agreement between the United States and Japan:

“Japan is a significant market for United States agriculture exports, making today a good day for American agriculture. By removing existing barriers for our products, we will be able to sell more to the Japanese markets. At the same time we will able to close gaps to better allow us to compete on a level playing field with our competitors. I thank President Trump and Ambassador Lighthizer for their constant support of America’s farmers and ranchers and their hard work negotiating better trade deals around the globe.”

“This new trade agreement will enable California Prunes and prune juice to compete more effectively in the Japanese market, a very important export market California Prunes, and we would like to thank the Trump Administration for their hard work in negotiating this trade agreement.” said Donn Zea, Executive Director of the California Prune Board.

California grows approximately 99% of the total U.S. production and 40% of the world’s supply. The California Prune Board represents 800 California Prune growers and 28 California Prune handlers.