Officials with the National Pork Producer Council are concerned Japan has formally agreed to a framework for a free trade agreement with the European Union. NPPC’s Dave Warner says they’re worried about the loss of one of the top markets for U.S. pork producers.

He says Japan has been the number one value market for America’s pork producers for several years.

Warner says Japan is also the building block for other potential Southeast Asian pork markets.

Warner says the sooner the U.S. can move forward with its own bilateral trade deal with Japan the better.