By Bruce Cochrane
The National Pork Producers Council says the quickest and surest way to avoid trade retaliation from Canada and Mexico over Country of Origin Labelling is for the senate to follow the lead of Congress and repeal the legislation.
Canada and Mexico have asked the World Trade Organization to approve over $3,000,000,000 in retaliatory tariffs on products imported from the U.S. over Mandatory Country of Origin Labelling.
The House of Representatives has voted to repeal provisions which pertain to beef, pork and chicken but the matter remains stalled in the Senate.
Nick Giordano, the vice present and council for global government affairs with the National Pork Producers Council, says, of paramount interest now, is making sure the U.S. is not retaliated against.
Nick Giordano-National Pork Producers Council:
It seems to me that the fastest way out of this quagmire is for the Senate to follow the lead of the House and to simply repeal COOL.
That's what shields the United States from retaliation.
Nobody knows for sure when the WTO is going to authorize retaliation.
We know the retaliation is going to be big.
It could come as soon as this summer under the rules and that means time is of the essence.
The Senate will be out, Congress will be out for the month of August and at some point the WTO is going to authorize retaliation.
People can quibble whether it's going to be late August, late September or even October.
The reality is it's going to happen and when it does, I'm not going to say that Ottawa and Mexico City are bluffing and I think anybody who says they're bluffing here are playing Russian roulette with U.S. jobs.
Giordano stresses, once the WTO authorizes retaliation, that retaliation can stay in place until Canada and Mexico City deem the United States to be in compliance, so Ottawa and Mexico City hold all the cards.
Source: Farmscape