9 Citizen water monitors welcome but ... Vol 16 No 1, January 9, 2017
farmersweekly.co.nz
Billion-dollar beef battle won Nigel Stirling nigel.g.stirling@gmail.com
A RESOUNDING victory in a billion-dollar beef market battle has added weight to calls for greater use of the World Trade Organisation to defend New Zealand’s agricultural exports from rising protectionism. The Geneva-based body two days before Christmas released its ruling in favour of NZ and the United States in a longrunning row with Indonesia over restrictions on imports of beef and horticultural products. Since being introduced in 2011 the measures, which variously consisted of a ban on a wide range of cuts as well as a complex system of import permits, blocked up to 90% of NZ’s beef exports to Indonesia and cost the industry up to a billion dollars in lost sales. Consultations with the Indonesians in 2013 and 2014 came and went but left NZ unsatisfied as the country’s officials simply swapped one set of import restrictions for another. In 2015 NZ requested a panel of the WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body be convened to review the measures. The US joined as a colitigant soon after. In its judgement released on December 23 the Genevabased body rejected Indonesia’s arguments that the measures were defendable under international trade law and instead ruled that all 18 measures challenged by the complainants were illegal. A failure to bring itself into
line with the ruling would mean NZ could impose tariffs on Indonesian imports or seek compensation. Indonesia can appeal the ruling. It was the first case taken by NZ since its successful challenge in 2007 to a century-old ban on apple exports to Australia and extended its unbeaten run at the WTO to nine wins. It also came as the Government put the finishing touches to an overhaul of trade policy kicked off by Trade Minister Todd McClay soon after taking over from predecessor Tim Groser in late 2015. McClay said the review focused on ways of tackling trade barriers like those used by the Indonesians. One of the country’s top trade lawyers, former trade negotiator Tracey Epps, said protectionism hurtful to NZ exporters was on the rise and the Government should not just be taking cases it thinks it is guaranteed of winning. “If we have a very credible legal case and a strong interest commercially or some more systematic point of view where we want to ensure that things are interpreted a certain way and a message is sent, then I think we should bring those cases.” Epps said headline-grabbing threats by American presidentelect Donald Trump to slap a 35% tariff on imports from China to protect American jobs were just the tip of a larger trend to protectionism that increasingly included substantial non-tariff barriers to trade. A report last month by the NZ Institute of Economic Research showed non-tariff barriers
growing and costing the dairy industry $3.9b a year. In late 2015 the Dairy Companies Association wrote to McClay urging the Government not to shy away from using enforcement provisions in NZ’s free-trade agreements as well as the WTO to address non-tariff barriers and subsidies. The industry was awaiting further details of a guaranteed minimum price scheme for Canadian dairy farmers with the potential to suppress global milk powder prices, which it believes could be illegal under international trade law and a candidate for a joint case at the WTO along with other dairyproducing countries. The Government’s agricultural trade envoy Mike Petersen believes rising protectionism is likely to lead to NZ taking more cases to the WTO but cautions against taking aim indiscriminately against trading partners. “It is all very well to look at the WTO and trade disputes in isolation but you have to consider the wider economic and political relationship as well.” Petersen said NZ exporters faced a number of irritants in dealing with China, for example. However, trade was flowing well on the whole between the two and NZ would want to think carefully before it took a case to the WTO challenging its single biggest trading partner.
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SUPERDOGS: Primary Industries Ministry dog handlers Susan Palacio, left, and Lucy Telfar admire the new pups. Palacio works with Morley the harrier hound, who is the father of the pups. Telfar works with Clara the beagle, who is the mum.
Biosecurity superdogs born A litter of superdogs has been born to improve New Zealand’s future biosecurity. The Ministry for Primary Industries hoped a new breed of detector dog would produce its best biosecurity sniffers ever. Its detector beagle Clara gave birth to three male and three female puppies on November 24. The sire was Morley, a harrier hound. Both dogs work for MPI at airports and ports to sniff out food and plant materials that pose biosecurity risks. “It’s the first time anyone in the world has crossed a beagle and a harrier for detection work and we have very high expectations for this super-
breed,” detection technology manager Brett Hickman said. “The idea is to combine the height of the harrier with the proven biosecurity qualities of the beagles we have been breeding for nearly 20 years. “The result could be the perfect sniffing machine to keep unwanted pests out of NZ.” The new dogs would be about the size of a labrador. “Their extra height will make it easier for them to sniff backpacks carried by travellers or airport baggage stacked on trolleys.” MPI started using harriers as detector dogs last year. It has used beagles since 1996.
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