02 August 2015
Media release by the Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand (DCANZ)
Groser proves trade credentials by insisting on a good deal
The Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand (DCANZ) is commending New Zealand Trade Minister, Tim Groser, for
standing firm against enormous pressure to concede to a sub-standard deal for dairy. The Minister and his team of expert
negotiators have preserved the ability to conclude a good deal in the future.
“What was on the table fell well short of the deal required to deliver the commercially meaningful access that is needed
by New Zealand’s dairy industry” says DCANZ Chairman Malcolm Bailey, who has been in Maui, Hawaii, where the
negotiations took place over the past week.
Agreeing a bad deal would have consigned New Zealand farmers to many more years under the burden of heavy protectionism.
Trade prohibitive tariff levels in Japan, Canada and the United States contribute to a thin global dairy market and
exacerbate extreme price volatility.
DCANZ understands that Ministers will reconvene in an effort to agree the small list of remaining issues. Bailey is
confident that it is possible to reach a successful conclusion to TPP, and deliver its targeted economic development and
job creation benefits for all the countries involved in the negotiation.
“We are looking to the US, as the largest dairy exporter in the region, to lift the level of ambition in dairy market
access. This is necessary to unlock the dairy deal”. Says Bailey
Dairy sits alongside autos as a remaining issue. For Japan autos represent an equivalent level of exports as dairy does
for New Zealand.
“It’s important that when this deal does conclude it’s in a way which addresses the important export interests of all
countries in the region. Only then will it achieve its objectives. A good deal is needed on autos, just as a good deal
is needed on dairy.” says Bailey.
ENDS