Response to Sugar Dumping

Phillip Hayes, Spokesperson Amer. Sugar Alliance, spoke with me regarding Mexico’s sugar dumping and actions that are being taken by our government to protect our sugar industry. “There has been injury as a direct result of Mexico’s actions not only to US sugar producers but to US taxpayers as well. US trade law is set up to prevent that type of injury from occurring and that is all that we are asking. We have petitioned the Department of Commerce and the international Trade Commission and asked them to enforce the trade laws that we have in order to make sure that we are on a level playing field and that an inefficient industry like Mexico not be allowed to injure US producers or taxpayers. Why are the Mexicans dumping sugar? They are looking to get sugar off of their domestic market. They have more sugar than they know what to do with. They are looking to keep prices inflated in Mexico. Answer this. If I am a sugarbeet producer out here in Idaho, did I make the wrong decision to plant my crop this year? No absolutely not. I think there is a lot of good news for Idaho sugar producers and I think that good news is that the US government has heard our petitions, the US government has said that our petitions have merit, the international trade commission has already issued a preliminary ruling that says we are in the right. The process takes a little while.