David Weldon: “As I have conveyed to you, my concern is that as we pursue international trade agreements, we must enter those…”

“As I have conveyed to you, my concern is that as we pursue international trade agreements, we must enter those negotiations recognizing the special needs of our fruit and vegetable sector, and Florida citrus in particular. While many of our commodities enjoy significant federal subsidies, fruit and vegetable producers do not have these same subsidies. Florida's $9 billion citrus industry potentially faces significant competition from Brazil. Brazil enjoys a cost-of-production far below that of U.S. agricultural producer. Today's tariffs on Brazilian orange juice account for the wide difference in cost-of-production between the U.S. and Brazil. Also, Brazilian fruit can be treated with pesticides that are banned in the U.S. This raises issues of safety, double standards, and competitive advantages. Any further reduction in the tariff schedule for Brazilian orange juice under FTAA could cause significant harm to Florida's citrus industry. Mr. Speaker, we had requested the inclusion of language in the bill specifically excluding export sensitive products such as perishable fruits and vegetables, and related products such as frozen orange juice. That specific language is not in your bill.”