NMPF and the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) submitted Oct. 17 comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) highlighting access to Canada, Indonesian foot-dragging and EU protectionism as among the most pressing trade barriers affecting U.S. dairy exports for the agency’s National Trade Estimate report.

The annual report provides a comprehensive review of significant foreign trade and investment barriers to U.S. exports.

The comments underscore that U.S. dairy exporters face challenges accessing markets around the globe, ranging from unnecessary import certification requirements to attempts by trading partners to limit imports by sanitary requirements not grounded in science. NMPF and USDEC urged the U.S. government to prioritize issues in 37 markets, including:

• U.S. dairy access to the Canadian market, which has failed to the promises made by the US-Canada-Mexico Agreement (USMCA).
• Resolving Indonesia’s inability and/or unwillingness to register U.S. dairy plants in a timely and predictable manner.
• Countering the European Union’s attempts to monopolize common food names like “parmesan” and “feta” in markets around the world.

Read the full complete set of comments here.