The Fresh Produce Association of the Americas (FPAA) has welcomed the finding of the United States International Trade Commission that imported blueberries are not a cause of serious harm to domestic producers.

"ITC's determination augurs the future success of the recently negotiated Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA)," said FPAA President Lance Jungmeyer.

"If the ITC had tagged Mexico or Canada for trade damages or remedies, this could have undone the promise of the trade agreement, because USMCA negotiators rejected the proposal to apply tariffs on seasonal products."

The FPAA said it remains "extremely concerned" about the number of trade investigations recently opened by U.S. trade representatives into imported goods, especially key commodities from Mexico, the country's No. 1 trading partner.

Mexican tomato imports already face trade sanctions from the United States, and the ITC has now launched investigations into bell peppers, strawberries, squash, cucumbers and raspberries.

"By commercial value, 42 percent of Mexico's production is under US sanction or investigation," Jungmeyer said.

“While we are encouraged by ITC's decision on blueberries, the previous administration left these investigations to the Biden Administration, which now must navigate a delicate situation with Mexico, our main trading partner. The investigations requested by the producers in the southeast were clearly the result of political pressure ”.

Mexico's Secretary of Agriculture, Víctor Villalobos, recently said that if Mexican products were subject to trade solutions such as tariffs or quotas, they would respond against US exports with "mirror policies."

Many U.S. agricultural organizations recognized the stakes when they signed a letter to the USTR in December opposing the aforementioned global safeguard investigations, and that tariffs on Mexican products would lead to retaliatory measures that would harm farmers. American farmers of grains, meats, dairy and other items. 

Beyond the ITC ruling, the FPAA said it is hopeful that moderate voices on trade that emerge within the Biden Administration will work to preserve the spirit of what was negotiated at the USMCA.

"Instead of trade conflicts, we hope to see strengthened cooperation between the United States, Mexico and Canada on agriculture, phytosanitary and border security issues," Jungmeyer said.

“We need to get back in the business of feeding North America, keeping consumers supplied with nutritious and affordable food. The complementarity of food supplies is the reason why T-MEC and NAFTA have been so positive for consumers and farmers ”.