WASHINGTON, Dec. 19, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S.
dairy industry today applauded a commitment to stronger protections
for common food names resulting from just-concluded trade talks
with China.
The favorable outcome of the U.S.-China Joint Commission on
Commerce and Trade meetings should facilitate export of products
like feta and parmesan cheese to China, which is a particularly large and
fast-growing market for U.S. dairy products.
"We are extremely pleased that the
United States and China
have agreed to strong protections for products using these
well-established cheese names as we seek to expand exports to this
key market," said Tom Suber,
president of the U.S. Dairy Export Council.
"We especially appreciate U.S. negotiators' recognition of the
importance of common name preservation to U.S. exports and the
heightened focus that the Obama administration has given to a key
dairy industry priority," added Jim
Mulhern, president and CEO of the National Milk Producers
Federation.
"The outcome of the JCCT meetings is a great example of the
progress that can result from frank and productive collaboration
between two trading partners," said Connie
Tipton, president and CEO of the International Dairy Foods
Association.
The issue of common food names and their relationship to
geographical indications (GIs) has generated considerable
discussion this year due to European Union efforts to impose bans
on the use of feta, parmesan, asiago, muenster and other common
cheese names in international trade unless the products are
manufactured in Europe.
The EU is using talks like those under way for a Trans-Atlantic
free trade agreement to impose these bans. In addition, it is
seeking GI-specific agreements with individual countries, including
China. The U.S. dairy industry has
strongly opposed EU efforts to impose these trade barriers as a way
to limit global competition.
The JCCT result lays out common principles for how geographical
indications should be handled, as well as a commitment to future
dialogue on GIs between the two countries. The JCCT is a forum for
addressing trade issues between the
United States and China.
The three days of JCCT meetings ended yesterday in Chicago.
For more information, read "U.S. Fact Sheet: 25th U.S.-China
Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade."
The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in
Arlington, Va., develops and
carries out policies that advance the well-being of U.S. dairy
producers and the cooperatives they collectively own. The members
of NMPF's cooperatives produce the majority of the U.S, milk
supply, making NMPF the voice of nearly 32,000 dairy producers on
Capitol Hill and with government agencies. For more on NMPF's
activities, visit www.nmpf.org.
The U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) is a non-profit,
independent membership organization that represents the global
trade interests of U.S. dairy producers, proprietary processors and
cooperatives, ingredient suppliers and export traders. Its mission
is to enhance U.S. global competitiveness and assist the U.S.
industry to increase its global dairy ingredient sales and exports
of U.S. dairy products. USDEC accomplishes this through programs in
market development that build global demand for U.S. dairy
products, resolve market access barriers and advance industry trade
policy goals. USDEC is supported by staff across the United States and overseas in Mexico, South
America, Asia, Middle East and Europe. The U.S. Dairy Export Council
prohibits discrimination on the basis of age, disability, national
origin, race, color, religion, creed, gender, sexual orientation,
political beliefs, marital status, military status, and arrest or
conviction record.
The International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA), Washington, D.C., represents the nation's
dairy manufacturing and marketing industries and their suppliers,
with a membership of 550 companies representing a $125-billion a year industry. IDFA is composed of
three constituent organizations: the Milk Industry Foundation
(MIF), the National Cheese Institute (NCI) and the International
Ice Cream Association (IICA). IDFA's nearly 200 dairy processing
members run nearly 600 plant operations, and range from large
multi-national organizations to single-plant companies. Together
they represent more than 85 percent of the milk, cultured products,
cheese, ice cream and frozen desserts produced and marketed in
the United States. IDFA can be
found at www.idfa.org.
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SOURCE International Dairy Foods Association