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US targets wheat board
17 Nov 2003
The US is cranking up pressure to get AWB dismantled, in a concession to US grain growers and part of the final negotiations for a free trade agreement between Australia and the US. The fate of AWB is now central to the talks.
Australia has demanded big concessions in the areas of dairy produce, beef and sugar. But if this is to occur Australia must offer a "trophy" to the US agricultural sector, and that is likely to be AWB. While some in the Australian Government may be prepared to bargain, the Nationals recently passed a motion insisting AWB remain intact.
An AWB spokesman said the US does not appear to understand how the AWB operates. Unlike big US operations, it is not subsidised. US grain producers want it removed because it's too competitive and enables Australian producers to get into markets that the US wants, he said. He stated that more than 80 per cent of Australia's 36,000 wheat producers support the single desk.
The Sunday Age, 16/11/03, page 5.
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