Dalton Yancey, chairman of the American Sugar Alliance, said he is encouraged by the ambitious proposal announced by the Administration that would eliminate export subsidies.
Yancey said he was also pleased that the Administration would work to improve market access and cut trade-distorting domestic support.
The statement came during multilateral trade negotiations launched at Doha this week.
Yancey noted that American sugar producers are highly efficient and welcome the chance to compete on a level playing field.
Yancey said the objective of free trade is not achievable as long as the vast and complex array of distortive government policies and practices that have resulted in pervasive dumping into the world’s sugar market remain in place.
He called the Administration’s approach an important step forward in attacking the problem. He said the approach can only be successful if all other WTO-member nations abide by firm and timely commitments that will address trade-distorting practices in affected commodity sectors.
“If this is not achieved, ruinously low prices in the world sugar market will continue and improvement in market access will not be viable,” Yancey said.
Many congressional representatives from sugar-producing states lauded the action and pledged to support the Administration.