EU en Thailand sluiten overeenkomst over rijstimporten (en)

The European Commission has just presented to the Member States an agreement with Thailand on a new regime for imports of rice into the EU. This brings to a successful conclusion the process of negotiating the move to a new regime with our main trading partners as required under WTO rules. The agreement establishes bound rates for husked rice, semi-milled and milled rice and broken rice. For semi-milled and milled rice, the EU will adjust every six months the applied tariff rate to 175 €/t or 145 €/t based on a comparison of actual imports and a reference import level. It will open a zero duty quota of 13,500 tonnes and allocate 4,313 tonnes to Thailand. For broken rice, the EU will apply a duty of 65 €/t, and will increase the reduced duty quota to 100,000 tonnes.

"I am very pleased with the outcome of these negotiations, which ensures that our interests are safeguarded while at the same time successfully completing the necessary changes to our bound duties for rice in accordance with WTO rules", said Mariann Fischer Boel, EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development.

For semi-milled and milled rice, the reference import level for six months is 182,239 tonnes.

For broken rice, the reduced duty is 45 €/t, and the reduced duty quota will rise to 100,000 tonnes from 80,000 tonnes at present.

Background

In order to adapt its rice import regime to the CAP reform, the EC notified to the WTO on 15 July 2003 its intention to modify the concessions contained in the EC Schedule for rice in accordance with GATT Article XXVIII.

The Commission conducted negotiations with WTO Members having negotiating rights: the United States of America, for husked rice (HS code 1006 20) and milled rice (HS code 1006 30), Thailand, for milled rice and husked rice, and India and Pakistan for husked rice.

The agreement with Thailand ends the series of agreements already concluded with the above countries.