The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) may be the most historic free trade agreement of its time. While the document was signed earlier this year, it has yet to be ratified in many of the 12 participating countries, including the United States, where it has become a significant issue in the race for President.

Many concerns from TPP opposition relate to a potential increase in competition from other countries, with specific concerns stemming from the U.S. dairy sector.

AAEA members Everett Peterson and Jason Grant of Virginia Tech University recently conducted research on this issue, titled “Impacts of the Trans-Pacific Partnership for U.S. and International Dairy Trade.”

The study’s full results will be released at the 2016 Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA) Annual Meeting in Boston, July 31 – August 2.

“It benefits U.S. dairy producers,” Peterson said. “There will be opportunities to increase exports and production of dairy products will be going up. And that is good for domestic producers.”