Mexican tariff on U.S. frozen potato products called devastating

Farm and Ranch March 24, 2009 Those tariffs Mexico imposed on U.S. imports over the cancellation of a pilot trucking program in the 2009 omnibus spending bill includes a 20 percent tariff on U.S. processed frozen potato products. Matt Harris, Director of Trade for the Washington State Potato Commission, says Mexico is the third largest market for U.S. potatoes behind Japan and Canada. Harris: "And from official U.S. statistics the value of frozen potato products from Washington state reached 40-million dollars in 2008. That is almost half of the U.S. trade with Mexico." Mexico had every right under the North American Free Trade Agreement to impose the tariffs, which Harris describes as devastating for his state's French fry industry. Harris: "Frozen potato products from the U.S. will be set at a 20% tariff disadvantage to similar Canadian product, which will remain at zero. Our concern is that we will eventually lose this market to Canada and some of the 20-thousand direct and indirect jobs sustained in our potato industry because of the free trade with this country." Harris says they are now really supporting and asking Congress and the administration to reform that Mexican pilot trucking program and allow those vehicles into the U.S. so that tariff on U.S. frozen processed potatoes will go back to zero. I'm Bob Hoff and that's the Northwest Farm and Ranch Report on the Northwest Ag Information Network.