Florida, Georgia Delegations Want an Update on USTR Response to Unfair Mexican Fruit, Vegetable Trade Practices

Last week, members of the Florida and Georgia congressional delegations called on U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai for an “update on the status of the private sector trade advisory panel for Southeastern producers.”

U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., Rick Scott, R-Fla., and Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., signed the letter. So did U.S. Reps. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., Sanford Bishop, D-Ga., Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., Kat Cammack, R-Fla., Buddy Carter, R-Ga., Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., Byron Donalds, R-Fla., Neal Dunn, R-Fla., Drew Ferguson, R-Ga., Scott Franklin, R-Fla., Carlos Gimenez, Brian Mast, R-Fla., Bill Posey, R-Fla., John Rutherford, R-Fla., Maria Elvira Salazar, R-Fla., Austin Scott, R-Ga., Darren Soto, D-Fla., Greg Steube, R-Fla., and Michael Waltz, R-Fla.

“Ambassador Tai committed to establish the panel in response to the bipartisan Florida Congressional Delegation’s August 2022 Section 301 petition regarding Mexico’s unfair trade practices,” Rubio’s office noted.

“We write to request an update regarding the private sector industry advisory panel for Southeastern fruit and vegetable producers that you committed to establish last year. This commitment was made on October 23, 2022, in response to the Bipartisan Florida Congressional Delegation’s September 8, 2022, petition for relief pursuant to Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974,” the members wrote. “As you know, Southeastern fruit and vegetable growers face enormous challenges, including unfair trade practices by Mexico that are displacing our growers from the domestic American market. We appreciate your recognition of these challenges and your interest in standing up for Southeastern growers. It is imperative that the panel be established and convened as expeditiously as possible so that Southeastern growers’ concerns can be heard directly by the Federal government.

“The advisory panel will serve as a crucial forum for Southeastern growers to contribute their unique perspectives towards the development of a comprehensive set of policy recommendations. Establishing the panel, and implementing its recommendations, will be critical to providing economic relief to fruit and vegetable growers and rural economies throughout the Southeastern United States. With the 2023-2024 growing season fast approaching, the panel must be convened as soon as possible,” they added. “We look forward to collaborating with you in developing effective and lasting solutions to ensure our growers can continue supplying the American people with some of the best fresh produce in the world, bolstering our nation’s food security and competitiveness. We respectfully request a timely response to this inquiry.”

Back in September, the Florida congressional delegation, led by Rubio and then U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, D-Fla., called on Tai “to initiate a Section 301 investigation of fruit and vegetable imports from Mexico, and to secure trade relief for Florida growers.” Scott, Bilirakis, Buchanan, Cammack, U.S. Reps. Kathy Castor, D-Fla., and Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., then U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Fla., Diaz-Balart, Donalds, Dunn, Franklin, Gimenez, Mast, Posey, Rutherford, Salazar, Soto, Steube, Waltz, and U.S. Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., Dan Webster, R-Fla., and Frederica Wilson, D-Fla., signed the letter.

Also in September, then state Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried wrote Tai in support of the delegation and pointed to a report from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) which shows “the decades-long economic harm to Florida growers due to the expansion of Mexican imports, causing estimated lost sales of 10-20 percent, 17,408-34,816 lost jobs, and a negative impact of $1.94 – $3.89 billion to the economy overall.”

“As you can imagine, after experiencing losses year after year due to such unfair foreign trade practices with no remedies accessible to our seasonal producers, we have seen more and more of our farms shutter their operations. Without relief, the future of our state’s second largest industry and the 2.4 million jobs it supports is at risk,” Fried wrote Tai. “Beyond the negative economic impact, this also poses a risk to the strength and security of our domestic food supply – a troubling matter of national security. Given the Biden administration’s commitment to bolstering domestic supply chains, supporting American agriculture, and combatting unfair trade, we look forward to continuing to work with your office and other federal partners to provide timely and effective relief for our domestic seasonal produce industry and are hopeful that you will move forward with a Section 301 investigation as bipartisan members of the Florida Congressional Delegation have requested.”