NCBA Pleased With Japan Trade Deal

American ranchers can breathe a little easier after it was announced that the United States has struck a deal with Japan to reduce tariffs on beef imports. The effort is several years in the making. Beef industry officials had been working on reducing costly Japanese tariffs as part of a possible Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal that began during the Obama Administration.  When the Trump Administration took over in 2017, the U.S. pulled out of the twelve-country trade agreement in order to focus on separate, bi-lateral negotiations with individuals countries.

An agreement was later reached with Japan and U.S. beef was finally able to enjoy a relatively even playing field with competitors like Australia and Canada after cuts to tariffs. However the volume of beef from America was restricted by a safeguard in the deal where, if U.S. beef imports passed a certain threshold, Japan's tariff's would rise again. National Cattlemen's Beef Association Senior Director Kent Bacus said that because of demand in Japan for U.S. beef, imports exceeded that safeguard and the tariff rate increased significantly in 2021.

"We saw about a 12-13% rise in our tariff. While that was a temporary increase, it was enough to cause Japanese importers to look at sourcing beef from other countries."

A provision in the trade agreement called for immediate consultation between Japanese and U.S. officials if the safeguard was ever triggered. Bacus said the modified agreement provides more stability and predictability in the beef market.

"Japan is a really good market for us when it comes to a lot of the cuts and variety meats that Americans quite frankly are not...willing to pay a premium for. So it's a way for us to maximize that overall value."

The Japanese market provided over $2.3 billion in revenue for beef exporters last year. Bacus noted that for every head of cattle slaughtered about $92 can be attributed to Japanese sales. The modified U.S.-Japan deal still needs to be approved by the Japanese government and then signed.

If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail gvaagen@cherrycreekmedia.com