Mexico has placed a 50 percent tariff on imports of white corn, a move that could aggravate trade tensions with the United States.
In a recent call with reporters, Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack said the U.S. will continue to follow the trade dispute settlement process under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement that was filed because of a ban on biotech corn. "We expect and anticipate that our response to any and all activities by the Mexican government is to continue to pursue an ultimate determination under USMCA that the actions taken by the Mexican government were not appropriate."
Mexico's President says the decision was made to help control inflation and boost domestic production and will be in place until the end of the year.
Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar said the majority of U.S. corn isn't impacted by the tariff, but is pleased that the United States Trade Representative is working to find a solution under USMCA. "It is a process. We would love to get it resolved tomorrow, but it is a process where we can seek remedy."
USDA's Agriculture Marketing Service says about 1 percent of total U.S. corn production is white corn and Mexico imports about 20 percent of it.
Tina Smith, a Senator from Minnesota, says Mexico needs to be held accountable for decisions regarding tariffs and the biotech corn ban. "We need to follow the facts and science as we look at these trade agreements to make sure that we are fully using the remedies that we have in the trade agreement." The Senate Ag Committee members say they believe the administration is being proactive with the issue.
EDITOR’S TAKE:
This is another chapter in the ongoing trade dispute between the U.S. and Mexico over genetically modified corn. Despite the fact that the U.S. does not produce much white corn, Mexico is a major customer for that product and the tariff is very disruptive to trade between the two countries. While most are confident that a solution can be found to avert an all-out trade war, rest assured other nations are watching to see what outcome emerges. Trust us when we say – other nations would love to tax U.S. exports coming into their countries if they thought they could get away with it, and that would be terrible for our farmers and ranchers. Exports are an important component of the ag marketing strategy for the U.S. We are confident that you can see just how devastating this could be to our farmers and ranchers and their ability to purchase trucks from CAD members!
