000365 China OKs Import of US Farm Products

Washington - China has issued rules to its ports that will end a ban on U.S. citrus and allow for increased shipments of meat, poultry and wheat, fulfilling an agreement reached nearly a year ago, administration officials say.

The agreement settled a series of disputes over inspection and certification standards, but China had delayed until late Tuesday releasing the necessary regulations for shipments to start.

“Final implementation of this agreement is a fundamental breakthrough for American's farmers and ranchers,” Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman said.

The Chinese action also removes a potential stumbling block in the administration's effort to get Congress to approve permanent normal trade relations for China, which has promised in turn to lower tariffs on a wide range of U.S. goods. The administration had been worried about losing votes of farm- state lawmakers because of China's delay in implementing the agricultural agreement.

China “has signaled to U.S. agriculture that this could be the beginning of a good relationship,” said the chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, Rep. Larry Combest, R-Texas.

The citrus exports will be phased in over two years. During that period, approved counties in Florida and California will be allowed to ship citrus that is produced in areas that are free of fruit flies.

China banned U.S. citrus in 1980, citing concerns about the Mediterranean fruit fly. Sunkist Growers Inc., a California-based cooperative, is estimating it will sell China $500 million worth of citrus, primarily oranges, grapefruit and lemons, over the next five years.

Under terms of the agreement, China also is recognizing U.S. inspection standards for meat and poultry and allowing shipments of wheat from the Pacific Northwest that contain minimal amounts of a fungus known as TCK smut.

“China is a land of enormous potential for American poultry producers,” said John Bekkers, chairman of the National Chicken Council. “China's implementation of the agreement means sales for the industry and jobs for American workers.”

China already is a major importer of U.S. poultry but all of the shipments have had to go through Hong Kong because of the absence of certification rules. The agreement will allow U.S. poultry to be shipped to other ports and cuts the Chinese tariff from 20% to 10%.

More than 735,000 tons of chicken, turkey and duck products worth $455 million were shipped to China last year. China has purchased far less beef and pork - about $14 million last year.

China had announced last month that it was going to accept a trial shipment of wheat from the Pacific Northwest. Allowing shipments from that region will save on freight costs and help U.S. farmers compete with producers in other countries for sales in the huge Chinese market. No wheat has been shipped to China from that area for more than two decades.

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