Conner Explains WTO Dispute on China’s Grain Imports

DTB AgriTrade policy expert Ben Conner spoke to The Western Producer about China’s slow compliance with a 2019 World Trade Organization (WTO) ruling on the country’s improper tariff rate quota (TRQ) management practices for wheat, corn, and rice. Despite current strong wheat imports, China still fails to provide transparency on how the TRQ is allocated which may cause problems for U.S. farmers in years to come.

 “It’s great that they’re importing at that level,” said Ben Conner, partner with DTB AgriTrade, a consulting firm focused on agricultural trade policy and one of the first voices to point out the problems in China. “But for trade policy it’s a long-term game.”