Japan won’t accept fresh Idaho potatoes, so U.S. lawmakers are pushing for change

Published May 30, 2023

Tridge summary

A letter from Idaho's congressional delegation and 31 other U.S. lawmakers to the U.S. Department of Agriculture urges the USDA to persuade Japanese officials to lift the ban on fresh potato imports. Despite ongoing negotiations, Japan continues to prohibit the sale of fresh potatoes from the U.S., maintaining the ban to protect its local farmers and ensure potato quality. However, Idaho lawmakers argue that Japan's reasons for maintaining the ban are unjustified.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

On May 11, Idaho’s entire congressional delegation — Sens. Jim Risch and Mike Crapo and Congressmen Mike Simpson and Russ Fulcher — sent a letter along with 31 other U.S. House and Senate members to the U.S. Department of Agriculture urging them to push Japanese officials to buy fresh potatoes, as Mia Maldonado reports for the Idaho Capital Sun. Japan is a top export market for frozen U.S. potatoes, but a ban prevents U.S. potato growers from selling fresh potatoes to Japan despite decades of negotiations. In the letter to the USDA, lawmakers said Japan has no valid justification for the Japanese market to remain closed to fresh potatoes. Sam Eaton, the vice president of legal affairs at the Idaho Potato Commission, told the Idaho Capital Sun that the fresh potato trade ban is a “politically sensitive issue.” Eaton said according to the Japanese government it ...

Source: Potatonewstoday