Tariffs Suspended (HRW)
The Biden administration has reached an agreement with the EU to halt tariffs on billions of dollars in goods stemming from a dispute over airline subsidies.
It’s a four-month cooling period and follows another agreement to suspend tariffs with the U.K.
Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack says the deals may mean expanding markets for US Ag products.
Vilsack: “..to send a signal for a potential opportunity for us to negotiate with the relaxation of the various tariffs that have been in place because of the Airbus and Boeing dispute. Maybe it gives us an opportunity to open the door with the understanding that any trade agreement must include open access to our agricultural products in order for it to be successful.”
The agreements to suspend tariffs mean that for now, commodities such as hard red winter wheat can resume exports into the EU and the UK.
Hard winter wheat (red and white) is the dominant class of wheat produced in Colorado, accounting for more than 95 percent of the total.
According to the 2017 Census of Agriculture, Colorado’s hard winter wheat crop was valued at approximately $190,800,000, based on 1,520,000 acres being harvested with an average yield of 27 bushels per acre, resulting in total production of 41,040,000 bushels.
Other commodities now allowed exports under the deals include; cotton, orange juice, cheese, and some tree nuts.
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Hard red winter is high-protein wheat that is principally used to make bread flour.
Hard Red Winter wheat accounts for about 40 percent of total U.S. wheat production and is grown primarily in the Great Plains states and the Pacific Northwest.
