HUTCHINSON, Kan. — U.S. Reps. Tracey Mann (KS-01) and Rick Crawford (AR-01) led 12 Members of Congress in sending a letter to President Biden urging him to hold India accountable for violating its World Trade Organization (WTO) commitments.
Current WTO rules allow governments to subsidize up to 10% of the value of commodity production; however, the Indian government continues to subsidize more than half of the value of production for several commodities, including rice and wheat. India’s lack of rule-following, and the Biden Administration’s lack of enforcement, have reshaped the global agricultural production and trade channels by driving down prices, depressing production of rice and wheat commodities, and putting American producers at a disproportionate disadvantage.
"India’s practices are dangerously trade-distorting on a global scale and impact U.S. farmers and ranchers," wrote the members. "We urge the Administration to file a formal request for consultations with India at the WTO and to continue monitoring other WTO member’s domestic support programs that undermine fair trade practices,” Mann said. “America must not yield for the sake of reaching consensus. Instead, America must work to promote solutions that will alleviate the global supply chain and food shortages, and America must take actions that will address those consumers most impacted by inflation and rising food prices.”
Reps. Mann and Crawford also led their colleagues on a letter in January to U.S. Trade Rep. Katherine Tai and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack urging them to hold India accountable under the WTO rules, particularly regarding wheat and rice production.
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