Obama Signs Extensions for Andean Act, Generalized Systems of Preferences

On December 28, President Obama signed into law a one-year extension of the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act (ATPDEA), as well as the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP). The extensions, which passed unanimously in the U.S. Senate last month, will allow developing countries to access the U.S. market.

The Andean trade act was initially enacted in 1991 in an effort to combat drug production and trafficking in the South American countries of Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. These countries now have duty-free access to the United States for most of their exported goods.

The Generalized System of Preferences program promotes economic growth in developing countries by providing similar preferential duty-free entry into the United States. Nearly 5,000 products from 131 designated beneficiary countries and territories are covered under the program.

A number of dairy products from developing countries are eligible under GSP, including milk and cream, whey and butter. Total dairy trade between the United States and developing economies totaled $1.6 billion in the first 10 months of 2009.

"IDFA applauds the extension of the GSP program, so that developing economies have a chance to create domestic markets and effectively participate in the global marketplace," said Clay Hough, IDFA senior group vice president and general counsel.

Trade in 2010: What's in Store?

As legislators return to Washington following the holiday recess, many are considering what 2010 will bring in terms of a trade agenda. With three stalled bilateral agreements and a shaky Doha Round, the administration's trade agenda appeared to be on the backburner, showing little room for progress in the New Year.

However, the U.S. Trade Representative's newly announced negotiations on theTrans-Pacific Partnership have breathed new life into the 2010 trade agenda. In addition, Congress' willingness to work with USTR on trade issues in the absence of fast-track authority, which expired late last year, indicates potential for further trade agreement movement. Some legislators, though, are still skeptical about the trade-pact benefits and remain focused on enforcing existing trade agreements.

Looking at outstanding policy issues, U.S. dairy processors still face a number of non-tariff measures that are creating problems. Appeals to Canadian courts regarding the legality of the country's new compositional standards for cheese have been denied, and these restrictive regulations could be expanded into other dairy products, such as yogurt.