|
|
|
FACT SHEET:
U.S.–Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement
September 2008
Printer
Friendly Version
(.pdf)
The U.S.–Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement was signed on November
22, 2006, in Washington, D.C. This comprehensive trade agreement will
eliminate tariffs and other barriers to goods and services, promote
economic growth, and expand trade between the two countries.
- Colombia is already an important market for America’s farmers
and ranchers. In 2007, the United States exported a record $1.2 billion of agricultural products to Colombia. Our top exports to the
market were coarse grains, soybeans, wheat, cotton, and fresh fruit.
- With the Agreement in place, agricultural trade between the
United States and Colombia will change from a one-way street to a
two-way street.
Currently, no U.S. agricultural exports enjoy duty-free
access to the Colombian market; while under the Andean Trade
Preference Act, over 99.9 percent of Colombia’s agricultural
exports enter the U.S. market duty free.
- Many agricultural commodities will benefit from the agreement as
more than half of current U.S. farm exports to Colombia will become
duty-free immediately and the remaining tariffs will be eliminated
within 15 years.
Upon implementation of the agreement, U.S. agricultural
exports will receive duty-free treatment on nearly 52 percent of
current trade and will see all tariffs phased out for the
remaining products. Colombia’s preferential treatment will be
made permanent.
Colombia will immediately eliminate duties on wheat, barley,
soybeans, soybean meal and flour, high quality beef, bacon,
almost all fruit and vegetable products, wheat, peanuts, whey,
cotton and the vast majority of processed products.
The agreement also provides duty-free tariff rate quotas on
standard beef, chicken leg quarters, dairy products, corn,
sorghum, animal feeds, rice, and soybean oil.
- On the regulatory side, Colombia has put in place OIE-consistent
import measures on meat and poultry and addressed other SPS and
technical standards issues. Colombia has agreed to recognize the
equivalence of the U.S. meat and poultry inspection systems.
- In addition, the Agreement commits the United States to
prioritizing Colombia for trade capacity building programs to assist
Colombia in fully benefiting from this new partnership.
- The American Farm Bureau Federation predicts that this
agreement, once fully implemented, could provide $910 million in
gains each year for American agriculture. In addition, the free
trade agreement with Colombia is supported by over 40 U.S.
agricultural and food associations.
For questions about the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement and
its impact on U.S. agriculture, please contact FAS Legislative and
Public Affairs Office at (202)720-7115 or LPA@fas.usda.gov.
U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement Page
|
|
|
