“South Africa cannot expect to continue receiving preferential trade benefits under the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) unless it rescinds its anti-dumping duties on imports of U.S. chicken,” Senator Chris Coons (D-DE) told members of the USA Poultry & Egg Export Council (USAPEEC) this week, who were meeting in Washington for the organization’s annual winter meeting. AGOA, which provides preferential U.S. import duties on a wide variety of products from more than 40 countries in Africa, is up for renewal in 2015.
“I will do everything in my power to make sure (the South Africans) do not derive any benefits from AGOA if they do not end the illegal anti-dumping duties against U.S. chicken,” Coons told USAPEEC members.
Senator Coons is chairman of the African Affairs Subcommittee of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and is co-chairman, with Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA) of the Senate “Chicken Caucus.” Both Senators Coons and Isakson have been vocal opponents of South Africa’s anti-dumping duties on U.S. chicken parts, which the South African government imposed in 1999.
Meanwhile, Senators Coons and Isakson co-signed a letter this week to South African President Jacob Zuma, pointing out that the “antidumpting duties South Africa has levied on U.S. poultry have been in place for fourteen years, effectively blocking our companies from accessing your market.” Senators Coons and Isakson said that “we are committed to broadening and sustaining the U.S. South Africa relationship and to resolving this poultry trade situation by the elimination of the dumping duties.” “We believe there is great opportunity for the U.S. to further invest in the South African poultry industry, as well as build partnerships between our poultry industries and university in ways that can be beneficial for all involved.
However, the Senators urged President Zuma to pursue “solutions expeditiously that guarantee market access for U.S. poultry” and to resolve the issue before Congress takes up AGOA reauthorization, which is expected early next year. “We will need to reconsider the extension of duty preferences under AGAO for South Africa if this situation is not resolved,” the letter concluded
