US lawmakers urge Biden to start WTO litigation against India
Top American lawmakers have urged the Joe Biden administration to initiate a litigation process at the World Trade Organization against India subsidising its farmers over half of the value of production for wheat.
The letters from members of the Congress and Senate have been welcomed by US Wheat Associates, which has been aggressively pushing for such a move by the administration.
A group of 28 members of the US Congress said American commodity producers are operating at a clear disadvantage to their competitors, mainly from India, where the government is subsidizing half of the value of rice and wheat, instead of the 10 per cent allowed under the World Trade Organization WTO rules. The letter was sent to US Trade Representatives Katherine Tai and Agricultural Secretary Tom Vilsack, and we ask that you take action immediately to reverse the trend of non-compliance by India with WTO domestic support requirements.
The Congress members wrote that the US has repeatedly pressed India at the WTO to reform its price support programme, but to no avail. They encourage you to initiate the WTO litigation process through a request for consultations based on India's activities.
The letter by the members of Congressmen on January 13 comes nearly a month after 18 Senators sent a similar letter to Vilsack and Tai requesting the Biden administration to pursue the WTO case against India's domestic support for rice and wheat production. The US has highlighted India's non-compliance through counter-notifications at the WTO Committee on Agriculture.
In a statement, US Wheat Associates said that it was pleased with the move by the lawmakers and Senators of Congress who asked Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and US Trade Representative Katherine Tai to pursue a WTO case against India's trade-distorting domestic wheat and rice support. The National Association of Wheat Growers CEO Chandler Goule said that India should adhere to international commitments and not continue to create unfair advantages for its domestic production and distort world trade as a WTO member.
He said that Senators bring the issue to the attention of the administration and will continue to work with the United States Department of Agriculture USDA and the United States Trade Representative USTR to improve the competitiveness of US wheat in the world.
According to a 2020 Texas A&M University study, which was commissioned by USW and USA Rice, the distortion of international wheat and rice trade from these policies has cost US wheat farmers more than 500 million dollars per year in lost income.