A South Africa delegation, including representatives of the South African Poultry Association, was in Washington this week to discuss with Congress ways to resolve an impasse over U.S. poultry exports to South Africa. This dispute is threatening South Africa’s continued participation in the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which expires this year and must be renewed by Congress.
Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Johnny Isakson (R-GA) met on Wednesday for about 45 minutes with a special delegation of South African government officials, including Ambassador Mninwa Mahlangu and South Africa’s new AGOA envoy, Ambassador Faizel Ismail. Senator Coons, according to his office, was encouraged by the South African government’s determination to reach an equitable agreement before Congress considers the reauthorization of AGOA this spring. Senator Coons is hopeful that the combined pressure being applied by the U.S. Senate and other American officials, as well as that of the South African government, will result the South African and American poultry industries reaching an agreement.
Also on Wednesday in Washington, NCC President Mike Brown met with his South African counterpart, Kevin Lovell of the South African Poultry Association. “The meeting was productive, the issues were outlined and they are narrowing,” said Brown about the talks. “Our government and the government of South Africa, and our respective industries, have been negotiating in good faith. I want to thank Senators Coons and Isakson for their tireless efforts to restore access to U.S. chicken in the South African market, where we have been unfairly shut out for the past 15 years.”
Since 2000, South Africa has placed an “antidumping duty” on all American poultry products, essentially shutting out American exports. In doing so, the United States has missed out on approximately 100,000 metric tons of chicken exports to South Africa. South Africa initiated the tariff to combat what they referred to as “illegally low” prices of American chicken.
AGOA, the 15-year-old preferential trade scheme that provides duty-free treatment to U.S. imports of certain products from eligible sub-Saharan African countries is up for renewal by Congress in September. However, doubts about South Africa’s participation emerged after Senator Chris Coons (D-DE) and his Republican counterpart Johnny Isakson of Georgia mounted a push for South Africa to lower tariffs on U.S. chicken imports to allow trade to resume fairly and without restraint or risk losing its AGOA benefits.
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 consistent vocal opponents of South Africa’s anti-dumping duties on U.S. chicken parts.
South Africa’s Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies and U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman met at the end of January at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland as part of a the effort to resolve the poultry dispute.
