Scottish salmon untouched by tariff change as Norway and Chile are hit
Exports of Scottish salmon to the United States have escaped a tariff increase that will be imposed on fish from Norway and Chile, the world’s biggest producers of salmon.
Fish from the United Kingdom will continue to have a 10% tariff imposed, whereas the tariff will rise from 10% to 12.5% on Norwegian and Chilean fish and other goods.
The tariffs replace a 10% global duty that was due to expire, and enables President Donald Trump to maintain import duties despite challenges from the US supreme court.
The levies announced last night by the US trade representative Jamieson Greer fall under section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which is aimed against countries that engage in forced labour or import goods made with forced labour. In this case the Act is widely regarded as being used a back-door mechanism for Trump to continue his America First trade policy, rather than as a push to eradicate forced labour.
Norway and Chile
According to trade body Seafood Norway, Norwegian seafood has the worst deal of seafood exporters to the US. While the UK, Canada, and countries in the European Union are all subject to a 10% tariff, the Faroe Islands and Iceland are completely exempt from tariffs because the countries have not been subject to a section 301 investigation.
“Norway is still hit harder [than Chile] as we have a broader product portfolio for the American market,” it stated.
On the other hand, Chile’s salmon exports to the US were worth almost US $2.6 billion last, compared to US $1.67bn (NOK 16bn) value of all Norwegian seafood exports to the US.
Producers’ organisation SalmonChile said its expectation had been that Chile would not be included in the tariff measure and, in particular, that Chilean farmed salmon would be incorporated into Annex A, a tariff category that protects imported products that do not have an equivalent home-produced substitute in the US market.
“We will continue to insist on our request not to be subjected to a tariff increase and on the need for Chilean salmon to receive the appropriate treatment.”
No forced labour
Loreto Seguel, executive president of the Salmon Council that represents some of Chile’s biggest salmon farmers, said: “We are studying the resolution and its scope. It is important to clarify that the US trade representative’s determination does not accuse Chile of having forced labour. It accuses the absence of specific legislation that explicitly prohibits the importation of goods produced under conditions of forced labour in third countries other than our country.”
“This decision has been detrimental to Chile and our export sectors, and for this reason we have supported and will continue to support the bilateral efforts being promoted by the authorities, led by the Foreign Minister, to reverse this measure,” added Seguel.
“We firmly believe that a challenge like this must be faced with a national vision, and that must translate into committed public-private collaboration. That has always been the hallmark of the Salmon Council: to collaborate for the good of Chile, and this will be no exception.”
