India said on the sidelines of the G20 summit meeting that it would reduce import duties on frozen U.S. turkey and duck meat. Lower tariffs will give U.S. exports a chance to win sales in the rapidly growing market, said U.S. poultry groups, while calling for India to open its market further.
U.S. trade representative Katherine Tai said the announcement resolved the last outstanding dispute between the nations, “an important milestone” in trade relations. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said “important progress” had been recorded but “significant tariff and non-tariff barriers to American agricultural products accessing the Indian market remain.”
India has agreed to reduce tariffs on U.S. products including frozen turkey, frozen duck, and fresh, frozen, dried, and processed blueberries and cranberries, said Tai’s office. In late June, as part of a visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Washington, the nations announced the removal of retaliatory tariffs on U.S. apples, chickpeas, lentils, almonds, and walnuts; that development took effect recently.
At present, India is a small market for U.S. food and ag exports. Sales were forecast at $1.6 billion in the fiscal year that opens on October 1, or slightly less than 1% of farm exports.
Under the latest agreement, India will remove retaliatory tariffs and reduce the basic tariff to 5% on frozen whole turkeys and frozen turkey parts from the current 30%, said the National Turkey Federation. “This new agreement will now allow U.S. turkey growers to compete in the rapidly expanding market.”
“We very much appreciate our government’s ongoing efforts to increase access for U.S. poultry and egg products in India,” said Greg Tyler, Chief Executive of USA Poultry and Egg Export Council. “We hope that in the future we are able to gain better access for chicken and to expand access for duck as well, which can help to further address the protein needs of Indian consumers.”
EDITOR’S TAKE:
India’s star has been on the rise in recent months as companies pull out of China and Russia. In addition, India now has the largest population on the planet. Their people are moving up the socio-economic ladder at a pretty rapid pace, thus, making them a perfect target for increased U.S. agricultural commodities and food. The recent reductions in trade barriers and tariffs will allow the U.S. much greater access in the future and make our products more competitive. As we continue to say, anything that expands markets for our farmers/ranchers is welcome news. Adding value to the crops and livestock will put more money in the pockets of those producers and increase the probability they will be in the market for a new or qualified used truck soon.
