Australian FTA Fails to Offer Cattlemen 'Equal Access'

America’s cattlemen are calling for an “open” trading environment – one providing equal access to each partner’s market - in trade negotiations with Australia, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) told the U.S. International Trade Commission today. 

Gregg Doud, NCBA chief economist testified before the commission on free trade negotiations with Australia and the economic ramifications of this agreement.  NCBA has historically expressed reservations about entering into a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Australia that provides more access to American markets than the U.S. gets in return.

“A successfully negotiated US-Australian free trade agreement should serve as an example of how an ‘open’ as opposed to ‘free’ trading environment can be established, even between staunch competitors,” says Doud.  “By ‘open’ trade we mean equal access into each partner’s market.”

The U.S. is the world’s largest beef importer and the second largest beef exporter. Australia is the world’s largest beef exporter, and typically owns the largest share (approximately $850 million or one-third) of the over $2.5 billion in U.S. fresh and frozen beef imports. “On the other hand,” Doud says, “relatively speaking, U.S. beef exports to Australia would fit in the trunk of a car.”

According to the NCBA, balanced trade can only be achieved through comprehensive multi-lateral World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations. 

“NCBA will not support increased access to the U.S. beef market until meaningful access and tariff reduction is achieved in other major beef importing countries,” says Doud.  “Because Australia, New Zealand and several South American countries are major beef exporters, and many major beef importers are in Asia and Europe, balanced trade can only be achieved through comprehensive multi-lateral WTO negotiations that gain more access than we give.”