The American Soybean Association (ASA) today expressed its strong support for passage of the Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement (TPA). ASA’s announcement of support followed formal action by President George W. Bush yesterday when he sent the Colombia Trade Agreement to Congress for ratification. Congress now has 90 legislative days to either approve or reject the agreement.

"Colombia has become an important market for U.S. soy and livestock exports, and this agreement will allow our exports to grow further," said American Soybean Association President John Hoffman, a soybean producer from Waterloo, Iowa. "As Canada and other countries negotiate similar agreements with Colombia, this agreement is needed to help the U.S. soybean industry maintain its competitive edge."

U.S. soybean exports to Colombia in calendar year 2007 were valued at over $91 million as compared to less than $31 million 2003. Soybean meal exports totaled $77 million last year compared with just $11 million in 2003. And soybean oil exports are now valued at over $7 million, ten times what they were in 2003.

Under this agreement, Colombia will immediately eliminate tariffs on soybeans and soy meal and flour. It will provide immediate duty-free access for crude soybean oil through a 31,200-ton quota with four percent annual growth and will phase-out the out-of-quota tariff of 24 percent for crude soybean oil over 10 years. Colombia also will phase-out its 24 percent tariff for refined soybean oil over 5 years.

In addition, Colombia will immediately eliminate its price-band system for imports from the United States. Colombia has long made use of a price-band system to limit and control agricultural imports through variable duties that fluctuate based on changes in world prices. The price band is currently applied to imports of U.S. oilseed and products, as well as to imports of U.S. corn, rice, wheat, dairy, pork, poultry and sugar.

Exports of these products will be expanded as a result of the elimination of Colombia’s barriers to imports from the United States under the agreement. The American Farm Bureau Federation predicts that the agreement, once fully implemented, could provide $690 million in gains each year for U.S. agriculture.

Finally, over 90 percent of Colombia’s total exports to the United States, and 99.5 percent of its agricultural exports, already enter the United States duty free because of existing trade preferences granted to Andean countries under the Andean Trade Preference Act, as well as under the Generalized System of Preferences system. The Colombia TPA will eliminate duties on U.S. exports to Colombia to provide a more balanced trade relationship between the countries. Thus, this agreement assuredly is in the economic interests of U.S. workers, farmers, and ranchers.

"We urge the Members of Congress to make the right decision and approve this beneficial trade agreement to strengthen our ties with Colombia and support U.S. exports," Hoffman concluded. "If this agreement is rejected, the United States will miss the opportunity to give U.S. products and workers greater access to the Colombian market.