Industry Leaders To Consider Positions On International Trade
VERNON ACHENBACH JR.
Lancaster Fanning Staff
HARRISBURG (Dauphin
Co.) Representatives from
most major dairy industry and
other commodity and support
organizations with ties to Pennsyl
vania met Wednesday with a rep
resentative of U.S. Sen. Harris
Wofford, D-Bryn Mawr, in a room
at the state agriculture building in
Harrisburg to discuss positions on
international trade.
The meeting was the first of
what Russell Redding, special
assistant and agricultural policy
advisor to Wofford, said may
result in an ongoing roundtable
between his office and Pennsylva
nia agricultural organizations.
Redding had called the meeting
specifically to address the federal
program of trade preferences for
developing nations called the Gen
eralized System of Preferences
(GSP).
As a program, the GSP is up for
review this year. Depending on
fact finding and testimony, it may
be abolished, continued, or
amended.
Currently through this program,
any of 130 eligible counties may
petition the United States to have
all trade barriers removed, except
for normal customs control.
The reason for the meeting was
partially because of a nationally
publicized problem with import
Producers
(Continued from Pago A3l)
• J. Kenneth Miller. Miller farms in partner
ship with son Kervin, and operates under Maple
brink Farms. He milks 8S cows and has 155 head
of young cattle. Miller owns two farms, for a tot
al of 175 acres, and rents an additional 150 acres.
Also, new producers were recognized. They
are Richard C. Elliot, Gary L. Mase, Lawrence Z.
Good, Brookshire Farm (Dennis L. Stoner and
Jay M. Good), Marvin S. Nolt, Jay M. Martin,
Earl J 5. Weaver, R. Bryan Balmer, Richard'L.
Myers, Gary Forney, David Heagy, Robert and
Linda Sensenig, Jay and Mildred Nisslcy, and
Wilson L. Eberly.
Top 10 producers for fiscal year 1992 arc Ken
neth G. Zurin (3.7 million pounds), John Landis
(5.3 million pounds), and James and Luke Bru
baker (4 million pounds). Also, Risser Brothers,
Arlin Benner, Harold Brubaker, J. Richard
Groff, Merle King, George Rohrer, and Ken
Balmer.
Honor roll members, who Vill receive bon
uses of 10-20 cents per hundredweight, included
Amos Conley and Clair Hollingcr.
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ing of Goya cheese, a cheese pro
duct used as a filler for Italian
cheeses.
Representatives of the domestic
producers of Goya were threatened
with what they and the rest of the
dairy industry claimed was unjus
tified dropping of tairifs and duties
on imported Goya cheeses from
Argentina, Uraguay and Hungary.
It the petition would have been
fully approved, as was sought by
the Bush administration, it would
have opened up a duty free glut of
Goya into the United States,
destroying the domestic competi
tiveness, according to spokesmen
for The Dairy Trade Coalition, a
group which was founded as a
result of the incident.
Estimates, which had been ridi
culed by some national columnists
based out of Washington D.C.,
were that domestic losses would
have been considerable: a 30*cent
per pound drop in cheese price; a
76-cent-per hundredweight loss to
the price of milk; and a $1.15 bil
lion loss from the dairy industry.
This was estimated based on the
amount of milk now used to make
domestic Goya cheese and the
diversion of that milk for domestic
Cheddar cheese production.
Further, it was said that because
the extra cheddar cheese would
reach surplus and support level
prices, the Commodity Credit Cor
poration would be forced to buy
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WALTER & DAVID WURSTER & FAMILIES, OTTSVILLE, PA
the suiplus Cheddar and farmers
would be assessed an estimated 18'
cents per hundredweighfto pay for
the purchases.
The petition for Goya has failed
twice, even after receiving pres
idential support, because of pres
sure from congressmen and the
dairy industry.
However, the incident points to
the need for some change, accord
ing to Mario Castillo, representa
tive of the Dairy Trade Coalition.
. Discussion also ran to the North
American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA) and the General Agree
ment on Trade -and Tarrifs
(GATT).
Although some organizational
representatives, such at Pat Wolff,
legislative liason for the Pennsyl
vania Farmers' Association, stated
that their organization has estab
lished some policy on the matters
(PFA’s policy is for the abolish
ment of the GSP), most representa
tives did not offer such solid posi
tions during the discussion.
The apparent bottom line con
sensus was for the groups to take a
more aggressive role in interna
tional policy making.
Redding said that he didn’t
come away from the meeting with
a sense that any consensus was
formed.
“I’m not sure that there was (a
consensus). I think there was con
sensus from the perspective that
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we need to better understand these
trade agreements.
“But there was no consensus
that NAFTA is good for agricul
ture.” Redding said. “One thing
clear to me. coming out of that
meeting, in Congress our chal
lenge is to inform the people who
are to be directly affecte). That’s a
big challenge.
“Likewise, all of these
organizations farm organiza
tions or commodity groups have a
challengem org or commodity
groups have a challange to inform
their membership.”
The reason for calling for a
meeting was two-fold, according
to Redding.
“From our perspective, we
wanted to bring (the oiganizations)
up to date on what happend with
the 102nd (Congress) and what is
coming with the 103rd, and to
focus on pending dairy issues.
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‘This was our first attempt to
bring together some of the real
leaders in the dairy industry to
have a dialogue on trade issues and
for Sen. Wofford to go out and
reach out. We're faced with trend
setting and shaping issues that wc
need their input on.” he said.
As far as the success of the
meeting, those attending nodded in
agreement when Redding asked if
there should be future roundtable
discussions.
“For the first time doing it, it
was a good first attempt,” he said.
“We started with 20 to 25 people
who idealy would like to be there.
We sent out the letter and (he got a)
98-percent response, which is indi
cative of the interest that is out
there. These people are looking for
a forum to present their concerns.
The message to me is, we have to
do it more often.”
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