The U.S. Trade Representative office is holding a public hearing today regarding the Section 301 investigation of unfair trading practices on the part of Brazil in a number of areas, including ethanol market access and illegal deforestation.

Several U.S. ethanol industry stakeholders are testifying, including Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Geoff Cooper.

“RFA strongly believes a thorough investigation is justified and necessary, and we commend the U.S. Trade Representative for bringing much-needed scrutiny to Brazil’s prejudicial and unreasonable actions,” Cooper said in prepared remarks.

“Over the past eight years, Brazil has implemented tariff and non-tariff barriers specifically designed to block U.S.-produced ethanol from entering the Brazilian marketplace. Whereas Brazil was once the world’s largest importer of U.S. ethanol, the market has disintegrated over the past five years due to the imposition of numerous barriers.”

Adding insult to injury, Cooper states, “Brazilian ethanol has had virtually unfettered access to the U.S. market for the past 14 years, facing only a 2.5 percent ad valorem duty. In fact, policies like the RFS and state low carbon fuel programs actually give preferential treatment to Brazilian sugarcane ethanol imports over U.S. grain-based ethanol.”

Cooper said RFA specifically supports continuing negotiations focused on permanently removing the Brazilian tariff on imported ethanol while fully enforcing the 50-percent tariff on Brazilian imports recently enacted by the Trump administration. RFA also supports working with Brazil to eliminate the unfeasible barriers that block U.S. ethanol producers from participation in the RenovaBio program, collaborating with EPA to implement adjustments to RFS compliance credit values for ethanol imported from Brazil, and removing Brazil’s Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) designation.

Also testifying in support of the investigation into ethanol market access today are representatives from the American Sugarbeet Growers Association, U.S. Grains & Bioproducts Council, and the National Corn Growers Association.

“Unfortunately, Brazil does not value a level playing field and unfairly penalizes U.S. corn growers,” Illinois farmer and National Corn Growers Association President Kenneth Hartman Jr. told the panel. “Over the past decade, Brazil has taken targeted trade actions aimed at evaporating current and future demand for U.S. farmers.”