Border Trade Alliance Complains Change to Tomato Suspension Agreement Raises Costs

The Border Trade Alliance told Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo that the U.S. port-of entry anchor for reference prices under the tomato antidumping suspension agreement "undermines the USMCA in letter and spirit," and will cause compliance problems for produce importers, since it is an administrative change to how things have always been done. In the past, a June 2 BTA letter says, the first point of sale was the reference point. But to change that to the port of entry will mean the costs of USDA inspection fees, transportation from the U.S.-Mexico border to the warehouse and other handling fees will be incorporated into the minimum reference price. The BTA believes this is an example of "U.S. trade policy calibrating around the protests of a small but vocal cohort of regional special interests."