DR-Cafta tariff clearance will have an impact on pork and cheese

Despite the warnings for years, the Government did not prepare local producers to face the tariff clearance of beans, pork, and cheese from January 1, 2020, established in the free trade agreement between the United States, Central America, and the Dominican Republic, better known as DR-Cafta.

This was stated yesterday by the president of the National Confederation of Agricultural Producers (Confenagro), Eric Rivero, who said that he has more than a decade repeating that the country should prepare to face the tariff clearance, but that the authorities did not offer guidance or support to transform those items that are threatened by imports without taxes.

He said that hopefully the issue of Dr-Cafta’s review can be resumed and producers can be readjusted to a new reality. “If there is no support from the authorities of the pork, beans and cheese sectors, those sectors are threatened in a very large way,” he said.

Rivero also noted that in view of the productive culture of the Dominicans and the investments in many of these areas, domestic producers must seek a space to compete with US imports.
He suggested that the Dominican market should continue to be reserved for national production.
He considered that the only way to guarantee adequate prices to its consumers is with national production.

Rivero said there is already an impact on beans and garlic, but from January it will be seen in cheese and pork.