CATTLE PRODUCERS URGE SENATORS TO QUICKLY PASS PNTR

WASHINGTON D.C. (Sept. 7, 2000) - With the final days of the 106th Congress approaching, cattle producers are urging senators to swiftly consider Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) for China, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association said today.

The U.S. House in May passed the landmark legislation that would open China’s markets to U.S. cattle and other commodity producers. NCBA is among a coalition of about 100 food-related organizations and companies that sent a letter Monday to senators urging them to pass the measure without added amendments that could delay the bill’s final passage.

“We are giving up nothing,” the letter stated. “U.S. tariffs on Chinese products will remain at their current level. What we are gaining, however, is access to one of the fastest growing markets in the world for food and agriculture products.”

In November 1999, the United States and China reached an unprecedented trade agreement that grants multiple market-opening concessions to U.S. industries. In return, China asked the United States to permanently grant it normal trade relations, a status the U.S. Congress has evaluated and approved every year since 1980.

For the U.S. beef industry, the agreement means a drop in tariffs from 45 percent to 12 percent over a five-year period. China also agreed to eliminate state trading entities, making it easier for American businesses to deal directly with Chinese business.

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Producer-directed and consumer-focused, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association is the  trade association of America’s cattle farmers and ranchers, and the marketing organization for the largest segment of the nation’s food and fiber industry.