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| Horticultural & Tropical Products Division | Return to the H&TP Home Page |
May 26, 2000
ITC Rules Imports of Chinese
Apple Juice Injure U.S. Apple Juice Industry
On Monday, May 15, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC)
issued a final determination that the U.S. apple juice industry
has been materially injured by imports of concentrated apple
juice (CAJ) from China. This decision follows the Department of
Commerce’s final ruling in April that Chinese apple juice
was being sold into the U.S. market at less than fair value. At
that time, final antidumping duties on imported CAJ imports from
China ranging from 0 to 52 percent were established. The
Department of Commerce will now instruct its Customs officials to
assess the antidumping duties on all imports of Chinese
non-frozen apple juice concentrate and it is expected that the
final duties will take effect in approximately two weeks. Since
the ITC’s preliminary affirmative injury ruling on the case
last July, U.S. imports of CAJ from China through February were
off nearly 70 percent on a volume basis, and down 55 percent
value basis, compared to the same period in the preceding year.
Mexico’s New
Documentation Requirements For Imported Apples Not Expected To
Hamper U.S. Sales
The Mexican government published in the May 10 issue of the Diario
Oficial new documentation requirements for some imported
products, including apples. It is now mandatory that imported
apples from the United States, Canada, and Chile include specific
information on the invoice or import documents, such as tariff
classification number, the variety, quality and grade
specifications, and the size. The ostensible purpose of the new
requirement is to better identify the product with regard to
Mexico’s reference price system. Mexico is the largest
foreign customer for U.S. apples. In marketing year 1998/99
(July-June), U.S. apple exports to Mexico reached 119,528 metric
tons, valued at $66 million, up 90 percent, both in quantity and
in value, from the preceding year. The new import regulation is
not expected to create problems for U.S. apple sales to Mexico,
as a majority of exporters already include the above mentioned
information on their invoices.
New Russian Import Regulation
Could Boost U.S. Juice Exports To Russia
Effective on January 1, 2001, new standards and duties for juice
imports will apply. The new standards distinguish between juices,
nectars and other products, and require additional labeling
information such as the name of the juice, its contents, and
processing method. The import duties for juice concentrates were
reduced from an average of 15 percent to 5 percent ad valorem.
The value of U.S. fruit and vegetable juice exports to Russia has
declined drastically in recent years. U.S. juice exports to
Russia were valued at $5 million in calendar year (CY) 1994, but
have since fallen to less than $30,000 in CY 1999. These new
regulations are expected to spur increased U.S. juice sales to
Russia.
National Organic Standards
Board to Meet in June
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Organic Standards
Board (NOSB), which grew out of the Organic Foods Production Act
of 1990, is scheduled to meet June 6-7. It has six committees
addressing issues related to crop standards, processing, labeling
and packaging standards, livestock standards, accreditation,
materials, and international trade. The meeting is open to the
public and will be held at the Hilton Crystal City, 2399
Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, Va., from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
ET. Time has been scheduled for public comment on June 6, 1:30
p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Those wishing to provide written or oral
comments to the board on any organic issue should send requests
to Toni Strother, USDA-AMS-TMP-NOP, Room 2510-So., Ag Stop 0268,
P.O. Box 96456, Washington, D.C. 20090-6456, or fax (202)
205-7808 by June 2. For more information, call (202) 720-3252.
Mexico Requests Expansion of
Hass Avocado Import Program
Mexico has asked USDA to consider expanding the number of states
allowed to import Hass avocados and to increase the length of the
shipping season. Under the current regulation, fresh Hass avocado
fruit grown in approved orchards in approved municipalities in
Michoacan, Mexico, may be imported into specified areas of the
United States, subject to certain conditions. The regulation
allows Mexican Hass avocados to be imported into the United
States only during the months of November, December, January, and
February and distributed only in the District of Columbia and the
following northeastern states: Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois,
Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New
Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode
Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. Mexican
agricultural officials have asked that the shipping season start
one month earlier and end one month later. They have also
requested that the United States consider allowing Hass avocados
to be imported into additional northern-tier states that do not
contain host material for any avocado-specific pests and have
climatic conditions that do not support the establishment of
fruit flies. The Mexican government has not yet identified the
specific states that it believes might meet those criteria. For
more information, contact Wayne D. Burnett, APHIS, at (301)
734-6799.
Trade Data Available Online
for 67 Horticultural Commodities
The Horticultural & Tropical Products Division has introduced
a new feature on its homepage designed to provide the public with
U.S. export and import data on a calendar year and marketing year
basis for 67 horticultural commodities. All trade files include
five years of historical data as well as year-to-date trade data
and can be viewed or saved in PDF or Lotus format. The data will
be updated every month during the last week of each month. For
further information on this new feature, please contact Karina
Ramos at (202) 720-6877. To access the trade data go to
/htp/ and click on "Trade Data"
USDA Introduces Online Import
Authorization and Tracking System
On May 12, USDA launched a new feature on its new website
that will allow customers to submit
online applications to import fruits, vegetables, and animal
products into the United States. Importers can access the site by
going to APHIS' Home Page at www.aphis.usda.gov and clicking on
Import Authorization System under hot issues. In addition to
applying for import permits online, customers can also renew or
amend existing applications. The site lists the guidelines and
user fees needed to apply for an APHIS permit and includes an
index of fruits, vegetables, and animal products that can be
imported. After submitting an application, the site gives every
customer a tracking number that can be used to check the status
of their permit request. Because importers can't sign their
online applications before they submit them, online customers
must sign their permits after they're issued.
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