The United States’ announcement it will remove its reciprocal tariffs on a range of food products, including New Zealand beef, has been hailed as a boost for exporters.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand chair Kate Acland said in a statement they were still seeking clarification on the exact details of the decision, but based on initial analysis, it appeared the US had removed the additional 15% tariff on New Zealand beef that was imposed under the bilateral tariffs applied across the board on August 1.
“This means that our beef will go back to facing a tariff of less than 1% under our WTO country-specific tariff rate quota and will restore a level-playing field with our key competitors.
She said New Zealand was a complementary trading partner, being an important source of lean beef that was mixed with US domestic grain-fed beef to produce burger patties.
“It is also becoming an important sheep meat market for high-value, premium cuts.
“We hope the US will also consider taking a similar approach to New Zealand lamb, which still continues to face an additional 15% tariff and has been experiencing similarly high prices.”
Meat Industry Association chair Nathan Guy said the US was New Zealand’s largest beef market.
“This will be a boost for our exporters as it reduces the uncertainty they had been experiencing in the last few months.
“Since these additional tariffs were imposed, volumes of New Zealand’s beef and lamb to the US have decreased compared to last year, despite strong demand and firm prices.
“Since April, New Zealand beef imports into the US have incurred tariff costs of over $300 million.
He said the tariffs had clearly been having an impact on US food inflation, so this was a sensible move to alleviate the pressure on US consumers.
“With US production at 70-year lows and consumption at record levels, the US needs our high-quality red meat.”
Minister for Trade & Investment and Agriculture Todd McClay cautiously welcomed the United States announcement removing the additional reciprocal tariffs on a range of New Zealand agricultural products, including beef, offal, and kiwifruit.
He said in a statement these products represented about 25% of our exports to the United States, worth approximately NZ$2.21 billion annually.
“The US remains an important trade partner for New Zealand and the decision to lift these tariffs is a step in the right direction and will be welcomed by exporters who have faced months of uncertainty and higher costs,” McClay says.
The additional tariffs were introduced in April at 10%, and increased to 15% in August based on New Zealand running a modest trade surplus with the US.
“Returning to the pre-reciprocal tariff access we had before April provides some much-needed stability for our farmers and processors. We estimate this is a saving of around $330 million in additional tariff duty.
“However, this is only a partial rollback. Tariffs remain in place on other important New Zealand products, and the broader reciprocal tariff framework continues to create cost and uncertainty for our exporters.”
He said New Zealand had a balanced and complementary trade relationship with the United States. US goods imported by New Zealand only faced on average a 0.3% tariff rate with very few restrictions.
“I have spoken directly with my US trade counterpart ... Jamieson Greer a number of times over the last few months and will continue to make the case that New Zealand’s trading relationship with the US is balanced and that the additional reciprocal tariffs on other New Zealand exports should also be removed.”
McClay told Mike Hosking today it was still a very uncertain time for Kiwi exporters.
He said he was concerned about the changing nature in the White House and even though it had been reduced, the tariffs could be brought back.