U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement: Potential Economy-wide ... - USITC

The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), in a written submission to the Commission,
expressed support for the FTA. The submission cited Korea’s agreement to accept all pork
and pork products from USDA-approved facilities as an important factor, and said that this
would allow the industry to take advantage of the eventual elimination of tariffs on fresh,
chilled, and frozen pork, and on processed pork products, negotiated under the FTA. 44
In its report, the ATAC for Trade in Processed Foods said that it was taking no position on
the agreement. The Committee expressed concern that the benefits of the FTA from the tariff
side could be nullified by continued TBTs in the form of SPS measures that are not
addressed in the FTA, specifically, food additives banned by Korea but approved by the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration and commonly used in U.S. manufactured processed food
products that effectively preclude the export to Korea of U.S. products containing such
additives. The Committee said that, for certain major U.S. food processors, addressing these
technical barriers could provide benefits greater than removing tariffs. 45
In its report, the ATAC on Trade in Fruits and Vegetables said that it commends the
commitment of both the United States and Korea in the FTA to base their SPS measures on
sound science, as required in the WTO. 46 The Committee said, however, that it is concerned
about how Korea has applied its SPS measures in the past, and urged both the USDA and
USTR to use every means to address SPS issues in bilateral trade as soon as they are
identified.
FTA Chapter 9–Technical Barriers to Trade
Assessment
The technical barriers to trade (TBT) provisions of the U.S.-Korea FTA would likely benefit
U.S. firms investing in and exporting to Korea. Because Korea reportedly continues to
maintain non-transparent and often discriminatory standardization, certification, and testing
procedures that serve as impediments to trade, there would likely be a positive effect on U.S.
industries and the U.S. economy based on implementation of the FTA. Among other things,
TBT provisions would likely benefit U.S. companies by (1) reinforcing transparency
obligations in rule making, (2) increasing opportunities for direct participation on a
nondiscriminatory basis in Korea’s standards development activities, (3) establishing
informal mechanisms for rapid resolution of disputes, and (4) reinforcing WTO TBT
obligations. The chapter would largely affirm and improve on the implementation of the
WTO TBT agreement rather than substantively expanding on it. 47
The TBT chapter also contains standards and regulatory provisions specifically pertaining
to the automotive industry, 48 including a dispute settlement mechanism to deter continued
44 NPPC, “Public Comments Concerning the U.S.-Republic of Korea Free Trade Agreement,” written
submission to the USITC, June 14, 2007, 3.
45 ATAC for Trade in Processed Foods, Advisory Committee Report, April 27, 2007, 5.
46 ATAC on Trade in Fruits and Vegetables, Advisory Committee Report, April 2007, 3.
47 U.S. government official, interview by Commission staff, March 13, 2007; and U.S. industry
representatives, telephone interviews by Commission staff, April 10–12, 2007.
48 USTR, “Final - United States - Korea FTA Texts,” 2007, Article 9.7.
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