[lbo-talk] US seafood distributors protest antidumping suits

[Grant Lee]

Vietnam Economy - English version

American Seafood Distributors protests shrimp law suit

The American Seafood Distributors Association (ASDA) issued a press release
on Wednesday, saying that they vigorously oppose the antidumping petitions
filed against exporters of shrimp from six countries.
The US Southern Shrimp Alliance filed a petition to the Trade Department and
the US International Trade Commission alleging exporters from Thailand,
China, Viet Nam, India, Brazil and Ecuador of selling shrimp at lower prices
than they are sold in their home market.
“We look forward to the opportunity to explain to the International Trade
Commission in the coming weeks why continuing access to imported shrimp is
essential to the financial well-being of literally thousands of American
businesses and individuals who are employed by those businesses", according
to Wally Stevens, ASDA President.
The inescapable truth is that, even if successful, this case will not
generate a single additional pound of domestic shrimp sales because the Gulf
of Mexico and South Atlantic shrimp fisheries are being fished to their
maximum capacity right now, he added.
"Shrimp is the nation’s most popular seafood, and shrimp consumption is
expected to continue to expand rapidly, according to a recent report by the
USDA. Since about 90 percent of all shrimp is imported, it is essential that
trade not be restricted", according to Stevens.
Moreover, shrimp is an engine of economic growth in many developing
countries around the world. These countries can produce shrimp at a much
lower cost through farming than can domestic fishermen, who face very high
and rapidly increasing fuel, gear, and labor costs.
According to Stevens, “The domestic shrimp industry has failed to anticipate
the dramatic change in production methods from fishing to farming. Readily
available farmed imported shrimp has become an alternative ‘center of the
plate’ source of protein, just like beef and poultry. Shrimp is
price-competitive with beef and poultry, which provides a tremendous benefit
to the consumer.” These benefits will be lost if artificial antidumping
duties are imposed under highly technical rules administered by the Commerce
Department.
Stevens added, “ASDA has apparently failed in its longstanding effort to
convince domestic shrimp producers that they need to position their product
in the market place as something other than a ‘commodity’ because
domestic-ocean caught shrimp simply cannot compete in a commodity market
against farm-raised imported shrimp. As a result, ASDA’s members have no
choice but to fight to preserve their right to import shrimp and preserve
those American jobs that imported shrimp has created.”

Vietnam Agency
- (02/01/2004)

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