US-EU Framework Backs More Ag Access

MANHATTAN, Kan. (DTN) -- Agricultural groups on Thursday largely praised the framework of a trade deal with the European Union that forces the EU to lower barriers on agricultural products in return for lower tariffs on European vehicles.

Under the deal, the Trump administration will maintain 27% tariffs on European automobiles until the EU introduces legislation to reduce tariffs on agricultural goods, which includes "tree nuts, dairy products, fresh and processed fruits and vegetables," as well as seafood. Once the EU moves ahead on that legislation, the U.S. will lower duties on EU vehicles to 15%.

The U.S. and EU jointly released a four-page framework that laid out each side's obligations. Under the deal, the EU is expected to "provide preferential market access for a wide range of U.S. seafood and agricultural goods, including tree nuts, dairy products, fresh and processed fruits and vegetables, processed foods, planting seeds, soybean oil, and pork and bison meat," the framework stated.

Coupled with that, the EU agreed to "continued engagement to resolve longstanding concerns" on non-tariff barriers affecting trade in food and agricultural products, including streamlining requirements for sanitary certificates for pork and dairy products, the framework stated.

The EU also agreed to work with the U.S. to recognize that the production of commodities in the U.S. poses "negligible risk to global deforestation." That's a critical statement for U.S. agriculture, as the EU also agreed "to work to address the concerns of U.S. producers and exporters regarding the EU Deforestation Regulation, with a view to avoiding undue impact on U.S.-EU trade."

U.S. groups called the moves "long overdue" and praised the steps taken by the U.S. negotiators. Meanwhile, EU groups complained that the deal isn't fair to their farmers.

EU agriculture has maintained a $17 billion trade surplus with the U.S. In 2024, the EU exported $29 billion in agricultural products to the U.S. At the same time, U.S. agriculture exports about $12.5 billion in agricultural goods to Europe annually, but that figure has been relatively static for years.

When it comes to dairy, the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC), "stressed that America can no longer afford to tolerate Europe's entrenched protectionism, which has cost U.S. dairy farmers billions and stifled real market access," the groups stated.

The U.S. has a $3 billion trade deficit with the EU when it comes to dairy products. That's been a long-time thorn in the side of the U.S. dairy industry.

"U.S. farmers win when competition is fair, but there's nothing fair about Europe's system," said Gregg Doud, president and CEO of NMPF. "An agreement with the EU has the potential to unlock billions in new opportunities for American dairy. To get there, dairy exporters need to see market access opportunities into the EU mirror those the EU already enjoys when it ships butter, cheese and other dairy products into the U.S. market. We look forward to working with the Administration to ensure the EU follows through on delivering results that farmers can see in their milk checks."

Dairy groups also called on the EU to end "the abuse" of geographical indicators in Europe, which the U.S. industry called, "disguised protectionism" to keep out U.S. dairy products. Geographical indicators, known as GI, are used to restrict imports of products that are considered in Europe to be specific to certain regions.

"This announcement is an important step in the right direction. America's dairy farmers are done playing second fiddle in Europe's rigged system," said Krysta Harden, president and CEO of USDEC. "For too long, the EU has wielded tariffs and red tape, and misused geographical indications, as weapons to shut U.S. products out while European exporters enjoyed extensive access to our shelves."

Dan Halstrom, president and CEO of the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), said the group is encouraged by preferential market access for pork and bison meat, which includes a commitment to streamlining U.S. pork sanitary certificates. The U.S. has been a net importer of red meat from the EU due to the vast barriers the EU imposes on imports, and addressing the EU's tariff and non-tariff barriers is absolutely essential for U.S. export growth.

While beef was not specified in the deal, Halstrom noted, "It is also critical that U.S. beef exports to the EU -- which are already heavily restricted -- face no further regulatory obstacles related to deforestation." Halstrom added, USMEF "also thanks the Trump administration for securing a commitment from the EU to address concerns of U.S. producers and exporters regarding the EU Deforestation Regulation."

Duane Stateler, president of the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) and a pork producer from McComb, Ohio, also thanked the administration for including U.S. pork, saying: "America's pork producers are encouraged by the specific inclusion of pork in the U.S.-EU framework to address tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade. We look forward to continued collaboration to address longstanding market access issues."

NPPC also noted the imbalance of pork trade between the EU and the U.S. In 2024, the U.S. exported $7 million of pork products to the EU while importing more than $709 million of pork products from the EU. To compare, the U.S. currently exports more pork to Honduras than to the 27 countries total that make up the EU, NPPC noted.

A range of agricultural products could benefit from lower tariffs. For instance, the EU imported about $474 million of refined corn products from the U.S. in 2024, the third-largest export market for U.S. refined corn products.

EU AG GROUP

The joint statement by the U.S. and EU to open up EU markets to agriculture was strong enough that one of the major EU farm organizations, Copa-Cogeca, criticized the deal, stating the agreement "delivers nothing for the EU agriculture sector." Copa-Cogeca criticized European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who had made statements about potential "zero-for-zero" tariff agreements for agriculture. But EU agriculture was not given similar treatment. "The minimum expectation was tariff relief for wine and spirits -- a solution endorsed by stakeholders in both the EU and the US -- yet this has not been delivered," Copa-Cogeca stated.

Instead, EU producers will face a 15% tariff on export products, Copa-Cogeca stated. "This one-sided outcome is not only unjustified -- it is deeply damaging to a sector already under pressure from rising costs, regulatory constraints, and increasing global competition."

Also see "Ag Trade Official: Trump Administration Seeks to Fast-Track Deals as Harvest Nears" here: https://www.dtnpf.com/….

Chris Clayton can be reached at Chris.Clayton@dtn.com

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