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Source:USDA, 3/24/20 The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Office of the
U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) today announced continued progress in the
implementation of the agriculture-related provisions of the U.S.-China Phase
One Economic and Trade Agreement. The Agreement entered into force on February
14, 2020, and the recent actions described below build upon the actions announced
by USDA and USTR on February 25 and March 10. Among the recent actions:
- Both
countries signed a regionalization agreement that, in the event of a
detection of highly pathogenic avian influenza or virulent Newcastle
disease in a particular region of the United States, will allow U.S.
poultry exports from unaffected regions of the country to continue (APHIS Regionalization Protocol Announcement). This action will help protect the increased access American farmers have gained in China’s poultry market. U.S. poultry exports have the potential to exceed $1 billion per year.
- China
notified the United States of proposed maximum residue levels for three
hormones commonly used in U.S. beef production. This recognition by China
of safe and science-based U.S. production methods particularly benefits
trade with China in beef, a fast-growing market that imported $8.4 billion
worth of beef products in 2019.
- U.S.
beef producers, for the first time since 2003, will have access for nearly
all beef products into China. U.S. pork producers will also be able to
significantly expand the types of pork products shipped to China. As
per the Agreement, China expanded its internal list of U.S. beef and pork
products eligible to enter its ports, including processed meat products (Updated Beef and Pork Product Lists). On the beef and beef products list, China removed all
references to age restrictions, in line with its February 24 announcement
that conditionally lifted restrictions on beef and beef products from
cattle aged 30 months and older (Lifting Restriction on U.S. Beef 30 Months and Over Announcement). USDA estimates that American cattlemen could
export up to $1 billion per year under this improved trading environment.
China also published an updated list of 938 U.S. beef and pork
establishments eligible to export to China. The USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service export
library has been updated to reflect these changes. China
has agreed to import all beef, pork, and poultry products except for those
included in Annex 1 (Beef, Pork, and Poultry Products Considered Not
Eligible for Import into China (PDF, 6 MB)) of Chapter 3
of the U.S.-China Phase One Economic and Trade Agreement. U.S. ranchers
and farmers can expect to increase their market share in China as a result
of these actions.
- China
updated its list of U.S. facilities eligible to export distillers dried
grains with solubles (DDGS) (Updated DDGS Facility List). In 2015,
U.S. producers exported $1.6 billion worth of DDGS to China. This action,
if coupled with the removal of other trade barriers, will allow U.S.
exporters to recapture this market.
- The U.S. Food and Drug
Administration published a notice to facilitate the registration of animal
feed manufacturing facilities for export to China (FDA Notice to Animal Food Exporters). In
addition, in response to delays caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, China
announced a streamlined process for registering new U.S. feed products for
export (Updated Registration Process Announcement)
In addition, China’s tariff exclusion process is in effect, and many importers report that they are receiving tariff relief for purchases of U.S. food and agricultural products. USDA continues to publish guidance for U.S. exporters seeking to participate in this process (USDA Global
Agricultural Information Network). "These steps show that China is moving in the right direction
to implement the Phase One agreement," Secretary Perdue said. "We
will continue to work with China to ensure full implementation of its
commitments and look forward to seeing further improvement and progress as we
continue our ongoing bilateral discussions." "We are working with China on a daily basis as we implement the Phase One trade agreement," Ambassador Lighthizer said. "We recognize China’s efforts to keep the commitments in the agreement and look forward to continuing our work together on trade matters." https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2020/03/24/usda-and-ustr-announce-continued-progress-implementation-us-china
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