National Milk Producers Federation

The decision by the World Trade Organization to suspend efforts aimed at achieving a breakthrough in world trade talks “is a disappointment for America's dairy farmers, who were hoping to use the WTO as a way of leveling the playing field while increasing their opportunities for future exports,” said Tom Suber, President and U.S. Dairy Export Council. “We applaud our negotiators for seeking an ambitious conclusion of the Doha Round, which seeks to reduce the current inequities,” Suber added.

On Monday, the director general of the organization, Pascal Lamy, suspended further discussions among major negotiating powers, citing the inability of the U.S. and the European Union to bridge gaps in their positions that are mostly centered on agricultural products.

At issue for the U.S. dairy industry was the ongoing effort by the EU to protect its sizable and lucrative dairy market with continued high tariff barriers. The European Union wanted to keep its market closed to the U.S. and other exporters. It is clear that the European Union was unwilling to do its part in these negotiations, according to U.S. dairy industry officials.

Jerry Kozak, President and CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation, praised the dedication and skill of the U.S. negotiating team. “To their credit, our government's negotiators understood that no deal is better than a bad deal for our dairy industry and the United States, and rather than tinker at the margins, they agreed to walk away for now.”
     
Both Kozak and Suber asserted that the U.S. dairy industry remains fully committed to the Doha Round, and the promise that it holds for addressing many of the problems plaguing the global dairy industry.

“A delay in the WTO negotiations means that our producers and processors must continue to wait for an answer to the serious trading inequities that hamper our industry's ability to most effectively compete, such as export subsidies, exorbitant tariff levels and domestic support imbalances,” added USDEC's Suber.

The duration of the cessation in the WTO talks is unknown at this point, making it increasingly likely that the President's Trade Promotion Authority will need to be extended next summer in order to finish the Doha Round. Because of the continued existence of the many unfair and damaging trading practices around the world, the U.S. dairy industry would strongly support an effort by the Administration to extend Trade Promotion Authority in order to provide another shot at addressing these important issues, Kozak of NMPF added.