Trade Team Ready to Head to the UK – Pre Brexit

A team of three industry delegates will head to the UK representing the U.S. Dry Bean Council, for a packed week of business meetings with buyers and industry representatives in Manchester and London. The mission will wrap up with a visit to The Trade Division of the EU Parliament in Brussels where delegates will get an update on the implications of the ongoing tariff dispute that places 25% retaliatory tariffs on US dry bean imports to the EU.

The UK is the third largest EU export market for all pules, the largest EU market for U.S. dry beans and the top navy bean export market in the EU. While unsure specifically how Brexit will impact our market share and future prospects in the UK, we feel confident that the UK will remain a top EU market destination for US dry beans and growth prospects are strong. The timing of this mission is particularly important to allow us to get a better understanding of the UK trade regime post Brexit, prospects for new trade deal with the U.S., and to reinforce our relationships with loyal customers. We are encouraged that a post Brexit trade regime could contemplate eventual removal of the 25% retaliatory tariffs on US dry beans destined for the UK as we continue to address the tariffs in the rest of the EU. The timing for this mission is ideal and we are excited to report back on the results in late January. We’d also like to thank USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service for providing funding through the Agricultural Trade Promotion (ATP) program allowing us to re discover UK market prospects in the age of Brexit.