AN IMPROVED offer by the local poultry industry to allow more US chicken imports into SA failed to win the approval of US poultry producers at a meeting in Washington on Friday.
SA’s delegation raised by 50% the annual tonnage of allowable imported US chicken it would accept free of antidumping duties but the US industry rejected this as insufficient. A US official who attended last week’s meeting confirmed on Tuesday the industry associations from the two countries had failed to reach agreement and were "far apart".
An agreement on poultry is vital to win the support of a body of US politicians for renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) which includes SA, in the US Congress. Agoa expires in September.
US senators John Isakson of Georgia and Chris Coons of Delaware have undertaken to ensure that SA is excluded unless US poultry is allowed into SA free of antidumping duties. Both governments have left it to their poultry industry associations to come up with a mutually acceptable agreement.
South African Poultry Association CEO Kevin Lovell said the talks had not succeeded as was hoped as no middle ground could be found with the US industry "which seems to be under the misapprehension that this is replacement for normal free-trade agreement negotiations". More
Source: www.bdlive.co.za
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