Canadian blueberry farmers and embassy officials pushed back Tuesday against claims that U.S. producers are being driven out of business by cheap imports from north of the border.

At the request of Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, the U.S. International Trade Commission is investigating complaints about blueberry imports from several countries, including Mexico, Chile, Peru and Canada.

The argument from Nadia Bourely, the Canadian Embassy91裸聊视频檚 minister-counsellor for economic and trade policy, boiled down to a simple premise: we91裸聊视频檙e not the problem.

91裸聊视频淲e find it very difficult to see how blueberry imports, particularly imports from Canada, could have caused any injury to the U.S. blueberry industry,91裸聊视频� Bourely told an online hearing.

Between 2015 and 2019, she said, U.S. imports from Canada grew by only 15 per cent, while total imports grew nearly 56 per cent.

If anything, U.S. growers have benefited from accessing the Canadian market, said Bourely, who urged commissioners to consider each country91裸聊视频檚 impact in isolation, rather than lumping them together.

91裸聊视频淯.S. and Canadian producers are highly integrated and this integration has worked to the overwhelming benefit of the U.S. industry 91裸聊视频� the only real increase in trade flows between our countries has been northbound.91裸聊视频�

Bourely acknowledged an isolated increase in 2019, which she attributed to a single multinational producer moving large quantities of frozen berries from its Canadian storage facilities to those in the United States.

91裸聊视频淭hese were not 91裸聊视频榠mports91裸聊视频� in any economic sense in 2019, but were internal movements by a company with operations on both sides of the border, with no sales to customers at the time of their movement,91裸聊视频� she said.

91裸聊视频淎s a result, not only do Canadian imports have appreciably lower rates of growth, in fact they have not grown at all.91裸聊视频�

Canadian berry growers have been girding for battle ever since October, when Lighthizer 91裸聊视频� long a champion of the protectionist instincts of President Donald Trump, who was at the time facing a difficult re-election fight 91裸聊视频� indicated he was planning to mobilize the commission.

Lighthizer cited in particular the fact that U.S. farmers spent much of last year struggling to deal with the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Blueberry imports from Mexico appear to be the primary concern, particularly for southern producers. But Canadian producers have been caught in the squeeze 91裸聊视频� and singled out by farmers in northern states like Oregon and Michigan.

Oregon producer Hugh Eisele objected to a 91裸聊视频渇lood of imports91裸聊视频� from Canada and Peru in recent years, which he said has undercut his businesses to the point where they no longer make money.

91裸聊视频淥ur problems are made worse by increasingly low (cost) imports from Canada,91裸聊视频� where producers can take advantage of the lower Canadian dollar, Eisele told the hearing.

91裸聊视频淥ur costs are not much different from our Canadian counterparts, but the Canadian exporters are able to leverage exchange rates to undersell the market and kill the early and midseason prices.91裸聊视频�

Rex Schultz, president of the Michigan Blueberry Advisory Committee, said shipments from Canada tend to enter the country without specific buyers already lined up.

91裸聊视频淐anadian farmers prioritize cash flow and are willing to send product to this market at what seems like any price, fresh or frozen,91裸聊视频� Schultz said.

91裸聊视频淎s a result, Canadian fruit 91裸聊视频� both fresh and frozen 91裸聊视频� keeps prices in the United States very low.91裸聊视频�

Roughly 98 per cent of Canadian blueberry exports go to the U.S., but Canada is the world91裸聊视频檚 single largest importer of American-grown blueberries by a wide margin, and the two industries are deeply integrated.

Maine, which did not take part in Tuesday91裸聊视频檚 hearing, has spoken out on behalf of producers in Canada.

The state is home to the bulk of the country91裸聊视频檚 wild-blueberry industry and has an expansive processing operation that91裸聊视频檚 heavily dependent on bulk imports from Canada.

Processors use excess capacity in their systems to turn those perishable berries into frozen products ready for distribution and sale, some of the state91裸聊视频檚 congressional members told Lighthizer last year.

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James McCarten, The Canadian Press

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