Earlier this week Copa and Cogeca sent a letter to the European Commission (EC) and the Member States (MS) warning against dismantling anti-dumping duties on Argentinian biodiesel imports to the EU, saying that it would have a "disastrous" repercussion on the European oilseed industry.
In the letter, Copa and Cogeca, an organisation that represents farmers and their cooperatives in the European Union (EU), warn against dismantling anti-dumping duties on Argentinian biodiesel imports to the EU, saying that it would have a serious impact on the EU market. The Commission proposal is set to be debated on July 27 in the Trade Defence Committee.
The extremely low level of new proposed duties will be unable to counter the distortive impact of dumping. Additionally, since the result of the WTO panel on EU duties against Indonesia is still uncertain, it seems illogical that the Commission already intends to amend the existing measures on Indonesian imports, said Pekka Pesonen, Secretary-General, Copa and Cogeca
Copa and Cogeca warn of the “disastrous” repercussion on the European oilseed industry if the anti-dumping duties are drastically reduced as proposed by the EC.
In view of the disastrous situation before the imposition of the duties, it is obvious that the EU biodiesel industry would be severely impacted by the significant lowering of duties, which would translate into a brutal reduction of its production and greater biodiesel imports from regions where rules on deforestation and conversion of land are lacking. Moreover, the dismantling of the duties would have a negative effect on the EU’s capacity to produce protein-rich by-products at the same time as the EU faces major uncertainties regarding the import of soya meal due to the GMO authorization rules. Copa and Cogeca therefore urge the Member States to reject the Commission proposal that is going to be presented to the Trade Defence Committee at the next meeting of July 27, Pesonen concluded.
