May 20, 2022

 

US slams Canada's decision to maintain restrictions on American dairy imports

 

 

Katherine Tai, the US Trade Representative, has slammed Canada's decision to maintain restrictions on American dairy imports, adding that the US is exploring "next actions" in the coming days, AFP reported.

 

Ottawa released measures that Washington claims do not address its issue over a major percentage of American products, including as milk, butter, yoghurt, and ice cream, being restricted to Canadian processors, limiting market access for US dairy under the tariff rate quotas (TRQs) system.

 

She said the government's focus is ensuring that US workers, producers, farmers, and exporters benefit from the market access provided by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

 

American dairy organisations are urging the government to react by imposing tariffs on Canadian goods, claiming that the USMCA trade agreement, which replaced the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement on July 1, 2020, requires it.

 

"Canada took the conscious decision to ignore both the US government and its international treaty commitments. It has entirely violated the USMCA deal, which was signed only a few years ago,"

 

Jim Mulhern, president of the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), said Canada took the conscious decision to ignore both the US government and its international treaty commitments, violating the USMCA deal, which was signed only a few years ago.

 

In the first case concluded under the new trade treaty — known in Canada as Cusma — in January, Washington won a battle with Ottawa over dairy TRQs, which reserve dairy goods imported under favourable tariffs for domestic farmers.

 

According to the US Trade Representative, the regulation makes it difficult for US exporters to offer a wide selection of goods to Canadian customers.

 

Mary Ng, Canada's International Trade Minister, said Canada is convinced that the revised regulations fully comply with the panel's conclusions and its acknowledgment that Canada has the complete discretion to administer its TRQs under Cusma in a way that supports Canada's supply management system for dairy.

 

She pledged to "always stand up for" local business, saying Ottawa "takes its duties and obligations under international accords seriously."

 

-      AFP