RENO, Nev. – Negotiating the return of beef markets may seem slower than molasses in January, but the United States’ chief agriculture negotiator says progress is being made.
“It is not a light switch we can turn on,” Richard Crowder told a meeting of the international markets committee during the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association convention in Revo Feb. 8.
Regaining full trade with South Korea and Japan since the discovery of BSE in 2003 has been frustrating. However, Crowder is confident the U.S. will prevail, overcoming what it views as political restrictions rather than genuine concern for food safety and scientific evidence.
Read Also
VIDEO: British company Antler Bio brings epigenetics to dairy farms
British company Antler Bio is bringing epigenetics to dairy farms using blood tests help tie how management is meeting the genetic potential of the animals.
As well, the U.S. refuses to make side deals that do not comply with World Animal Health Organization (OIE) guidelines.
Crowder said customers can renege if the U.S. makes special deals to get back in a market that is not aligned with accepted international standards.
“Anybody can find some reason to reject them.”
The U.S. resumed trade with South Korea in March 2006. South Korea published its protocol that was not OIE compliant and the first three U.S. beef shipments were rejected because bone chips were discovered, said Thad Lively of the U.S. Meat Export Federation.
Mark Gustafson of JBS/Swift said bone chips or mispacked orders occur in the real world of business but restrictive Asian rules caused beef to be shipped back to the U.S.
“One of the areas that is blurred is commercialism versus politics,” he said.
Crowder is confident a new presidential administration in South Korea is anxious to sign a free trade agreement and improve beef access. Once an agreement is reached, the 40 percent tariff on beef will come off and additional dollars can be earned.
Japan continues to demand boneless beef derived from cattle younger than 21 months.
“Japan’s current position on the importation of U.S. beef is not defensible from a trade or science standpoint.”
Crowder said the 21 month age restriction is to protect Japan’s domestic market rather than protect public health.
It does not respect international trading rules and is applying standards to imported beef that are different from those applied to domestic production, he added.
As a show of good faith, the U.S is harmonizing its BSE rules and standards as closely as possible with OIE guidelines.
One of the first steps was resuming broader trade with Canada. Another rule will come this summer to harmonize further OIE guidelines and resume trade with other countries with the same risk status, said U.S. agriculture undersecretary Bruce Knight.
He told producers that controlled risk status should not be a barrier, as long as proper requirements such as specified risk material removal and feed bans are met. To be compliant with OIE guidelines and world trade rules, the U.S. must grant other countries equal treatment, he said. Rule 2 shows the world the U.S. is interested in fair trade when it accepted imports from Canada last November on all classes of cattle.
“It made me a little unpopular,” Knight said about his home state of South Dakota, where many producers opposed Rule 2.
“If we are going to ask other countries to comply with the OIE, we must do the same thing.”
