Isakson, Coons Press South African Head of State on Poultry Barriers
The South African government still needs to establish a “rebate facility” to exempt 65,000 metric tons of U.S. bone-in poultry, the entire U.S. quota, from antidumping duties in order to implement the Paris agreement struck between the U.S. and South Africa in June, said Sens. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and Chris Coons, D-Del., in a Sept. 11 letter (here) to South African President Jacob Zuma. Those two lawmakers have led the charge over recent months to open U.S. poultry access to the South African market, and since the Paris agreement they’ve continued to press for quick South African action (see 1508080002).
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South Africa must also create more transparency in the legal process for administration of the quota, said Isakson and Coons. “Although the agreement was announced three months ago, we understand that neither of these essential processes have been initiated in South Africa. We are also disappointed to learn that there has been no progress in addressing South Africa’s complete ban on U.S. poultry due to avian influenza,” said the letter, referring to the ban put in place in late 2014. “It is important that the South African government follow World Organization for Animal Health guidelines and implement a policy of regionalization for highly pathogenic avian influenza, along with the final adoption of language for export certificates. Without these issues being addressed and in place, U.S. companies cannot ship product, regardless of the other terms of the Paris agreement being reached.”
The African Growth and Opportunity Act out-of-cycle review of South Africa is ongoing, following an early August hearing (see 1508070021). U.S. agriculture producers railed against South African barriers across a range of products. U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman recently threatened AGOA preference cuts for South Africa if the country doesn’t meet its commitments in the Paris agreement (see 1508270009).