U.S. Dairy groups are hailing U.S. Trade Ambassador Katherine Tai for calling out the European Union for blocking fair competition through the pursuit of geographical indicators. Iowa State Dairy Association Executive Director Mitch Schulte says using common names should not hamper U.S. producers from exporting their product to other countries.
He’s hoping the U.S.T.R. will continue to hold a hard stance on issues like geographic indicators and other trade barriers to ensure exports can flow smoothly to global customers of the United States.
Schulte says whether it’s a possible trade pact with the E.U. or any other potential customer, non-tariff barriers must be removed.
The Iowa Dairy group has joined the National Milk Producers Federation, and U.S. Dairy Export Council in stating that geographic indicators restrict the use of common food and beverage terms which create barriers to trade relying on common food names.
