Florida Tomato Exchange, US: Lawsuit remand shows Mexican tomato industry can’t avoid dumping charges

The U.S. Court of International Trade has ordered the Department of Commerce to revisit its 2019 decision on the dumping of Mexican tomatoes in the U.S. market. This comes after a lawsuit from a major Mexican tomato exporter challenging the procedural aspects of the investigation, specifically the timeframe used to determine dumping levels. Although this decision does not impact the 2019 Suspension Agreement or the ongoing requests by the U.S. tomato industry, led by the Florida Tomato Exchange, to terminate the agreement due to its perceived ineffectiveness in addressing unfair trade practices, it represents a significant development in the long-standing trade dispute. The Florida Tomato Exchange, which represents 50 percent of U.S. fresh-market tomato production, views the court's decision as a delay in addressing the issue of Mexican tomatoes being dumped in the U.S. market for over three decades. The Department of Commerce is now tasked with redoing its investigation using data from 1996, with results expected by August, though there may be extensions.