The agriculture industry pressed the Trump administration Friday to find ways to open the European Union on trade, saying the upcoming talks with EU officials were an opportunity to break down its protectionist policies, such as preventing U.S. cheesemakers to use European names like “Parmesan” for their products.
“The EU limits the entry of lower priced grains from non-EU countries through quotas and a reference price system based on U.S. exchange prices and transportation costs,” testified U.S. Grains Council Director of Trade Policy Floyd Gaibler at a hearing Friday hosted by the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office. “The U.S. government should demand that the EU eliminate the price reference system and commit to maintaining zero duties” on agricultural products.
The nontariff barriers used by the EU include regulations regarding the use of pesticide, hormones, and biotechnology. The U.S. agricultural industry argues that these are mere pretenses to protect the EU industries from competition.
Processed food exports from the U.S. to the EU totaled $3.2 billion last year, making it the third-largest market for the industry after Canada and Mexico. Those products face tariffs averaging 14.6 percent, said the Grocery Manufacturers Association. Those are just the direct taxes, though. Navigating EU regulations is far more damaging to the industry’s bottom line.
“Unjustified EU regulations can add as much as 102 percent to the cost of heavily protected products like meats fruits and vegetables,” said Nancy Wilkins, GMA’s director of federal affairs.
Shawna Morris, testifying on behalf of both the National Milk Producers Federation and the U.S. Dairy Export Council, pointed out that the EU prevents nonmember countries from labeling cheeses as “Parmesan” or “Asiago” on the grounds that those only come from the specific regions in EU where the cheeses originated.
The Trump administration is set to talk with its EU counterparts on trade issues next year. Hanging over the talks are a threat by the administration to impose tariffs of autos and auto parts.
