Thread: U.S. beet farmers oppose Central American free trade pact

http://www.canada.com/businesscentre/st ... 05fc1f3e37

U.S. beet farmers oppose Central American free trade pact over sugar imports

John Miller
Canadian Press

May 18, 2005


BOISE, Idaho (AP) - U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns has hit a roadblock as he stumps for the Central American Free Trade Agreement.

Idaho sugar beet farmers are opposing the pact, known as CAFTA, because of provisions allowing 107,000 tonnes of sugar to be imported into the U.S.

Sugar beets are an $800-million-US industry in Idaho and the state's third-largest crop, and the farmers have won support from the state's Republican congressional delegation and Gov. Dirk Kempthorne. They've also persuaded the Idaho Farm Bureau Federation to lobby against it.

Many of the 6,000 cane and beet sugar producers in other states - including Minnesota, Louisiana, Florida, North Dakota, Oregon, Nebraska and Washington - also say CAFTA's a bad deal unless the sugar provisions are lifted.

Johanns, in Boise on Tuesday, tried to reassure growers that they won't be hurt.

"The amount of sugar authorized by CAFTA is under two per cent (of domestic consumption)," Johanns said. "That's something like two packages a day. There isn't enough sugar in CAFTA to impact the program."

But many farmers say lifting restrictions on sugar imports from the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua could lead to flooded markets and lower prices for their crops. They also worry other deals will follow with sugar-producing nations such as South Africa and Thailand.

"We're concerned it could also set a precedent for other trade agreements they're negotiating now," said Mark Duffin, executive director of Idaho Sugarbeet Growers Association.

The industry has struggled recently in the region. Amalgamated Sugar Co., a $500-million growers co-operative based in Boise, shuttered operations at a Nyssa, Ore., plant starting in February.

Ralph Burton, Amalgamated's president, said the layoffs were due to free-trade agreements and U.S. marketing policies that permit large sugar imports from overseas. That resulted in a cutback in this season's acreage by about 16 per cent.

"We've already got an oversupply of sugar," Burton said. "CAFTA bodes to be a template for things to come."

However, U.S. policies governing the sugar industry have been called unfair by governments such as Australia and Thailand.

U.S. sugar producers control nearly 85 per cent of the domestic market, helping keep prices double those of the rest of the globe, Johanns said. That wouldn't change under CAFTA, he added, saying the strict quota system would still be enforced.

The agreement was signed by President George W. Bush last May, but still needs congressional approval.

Bush says he wants the pact to open Central American markets to American products - including agriculture, technology and manufactured goods - by helping to eliminate tariffs now seen as a barrier to U.S. trade.

Tariffs levied by CAFTA countries are as high as 15 per cent on Idaho potatoes, 89 per cent on dry beans and lentils and 30 per cent on beef, Johanns said.

"Without a level playing field, it's difficult for us to compete," said Mike Webster, an Idaho rancher and member of the Idaho Cattle Association, which backs CAFTA. "That's not just good business. In cowboy talk, that's just plain good common sense."
© The Canadian Press 2005

also say CAFTA's a bad deal unless the sugar provisions are lifted.

This is the problem.........CAFTA is ONLY A BAD DEAL UNLESS THEY GET WHAT THEY WANT.........then it's okey dokey, pass the piece of (Oops!)no matter what happens to the USA!

I'm warning everyone right now.......no matter if this is defeated at the moment, these bums will REGROUP AND GO ANOTHER ROUTE.

Be prepared.