Livestock groups told the Senate Agriculture Committee they need certainty in trade.

During a hearing Wednesday, groups including the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the National Pork Producers Council urged lawmakers to approve the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement quickly.

NCBA President Jennifer Houston says the U.S. needs to pass USMCA to “send a message to the rest of the world that the United States is open for business.”

Agriculture groups focused on other trade needs, including  finalizing negotiations with Japan and China.

A pork industry representative from NPPC told lawmakers the U.S. is missing out “on an unprecedented sales opportunity.”

Punitive tariffs have cost U.S. producers $8 per animal, or $1 billion last year, according to the organization.

Affordable pork is in short supply in China because African swine fever has ravaged the Chinese hog herd and significantly reduced the production of pork.

NPPC says “we need to remove market access uncertainty and level the playing field in the world’s largest pork-consuming nation.”