After more than ten years of interruption of trade, the United States and the European Union (EU) announced on Friday February 4 that they had finalized a bilateral agreement allowing the resumption of exports of marine bivalve molluscs (mussels, oysters, Scallops, clams).
American producers in the states of Massachusetts and Washington will now be able to export to the EU. Spanish and Dutch producers will be able to do the same for the United States. Trade in bivalve molluscs between Brussels and Washington had been suspended since 2011 due to different regulatory standards between the two sides.
But following negotiations in 2015, the European Commission and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found that the safety systems surrounding the production of these molluscs in Spain and the Netherlands on the one hand, and in the states of Massachusetts and Washington on the other, were equivalent.
“A positive step”
The agreement paves the way for exports to other EU member states and other US states. “Today’s announcement represents a positive step in the commercial relationship between the United States and the EU”reacted in a press release Katherine Tai, the United States Trade Representative (USTR). “The Biden-Harris administration is committed to addressing trade barriers and creating new opportunities for American producers”she continued.
According to the USTR, seafood exports from the United States to the EU accounted for more than $900 million last year. US sales worldwide totaled $4.5 billion in 2020. European Commission Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis said the deal “shows that our efforts to build a positive and forward-looking trade agenda are paying off” :
“Since the EU-US summit in June 2021, we have made several breakthroughs: the settlement of the dispute between Airbus and Boeing, the launch of the Trade and Technology Council and the pause in the trade dispute over steel and l ‘aluminum. »
“All of these successes, in addition to the resumption of trade in bivalve molluscs, are helping to create sustainable economic growth and employment”he added.