OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
Executive Office of the President
Washington, D.C.
20508

For Immediate Release:
July 15, 2003

U.S. Wins WTO Case against Japan's Restrictions on U.S. Apples

WASHINGTON - U.S. Trade Representative Robert B. Zoellick announced today
that a World Trade Organization (WTO) panel has agreed with the United
States that Japan's import restrictions on U.S. apples are not justified and
are in breach of Japan's WTO obligations. Japan imposes severe restrictions
on imported U.S. apples, allegedly to protect Japanese plants from fire
blight, a plant disease. The United States, however, showed that there is
no scientific evidence that harvested apple fruit can transmit fire blight,
and the panel sided with the United States.

"We welcome the panel's findings that Japan's restrictions on imported U.S.
apples violate WTO rules. U.S. farmers grow the world's finest agricultural
goods and increasingly depend on foreign markets for their livelihood, and
they benefit from a rules-based system like the WTO that ensures that others
follow the rules," said Zoellick. "We are committed to ensuring a level
playing field for our farmers, and will not accept others' unfounded use of
supposed plant health regulations to distort and restrict trade. We will
continue to utilize WTO rules to keep markets open for U.S. agricultural
exports."

"We applaud the WTO ruling against Japan's restrictive requirements for U.S.
apple imports," Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman said. "This action
should lead to markedly improved access conditions for U.S. apple growers
and allow us to realize the full potential of this important market."

U.S. farmers send more than $390 million worth of world-class apples abroad
every year, in particular from Washington State and Oregon. However, Japan's
severe fire blight restrictions have essentially blocked our apples from
reaching Japanese consumers; for example, U.S. apple exports to Japan were
limited to only $377,000 in 2001. Removal of Japan's WTO-inconsistent import
barriers would give a boost to U.S. apple farmers by providing the
opportunity to increase U.S. exports.

The WTO panel sided with the United States on all of its major claims in
this dispute. Specifically, the panel:

- found Japan had acted inconsistently with its WTO obligations by
maintaining its import restrictions on U.S. apples without sufficient
scientific evidence;

- found Japan had acted inconsistently with its obligation to base the
import restrictions on a risk assessment.

Background

Japan claimed that its restrictions on imports of U.S. apples were necessary
to prevent introduction of fire blight (a disease that affects plants but
not humans) into Japan. However, as the United States pointed out to Japan
repeatedly over more than a decade of bilateral talks, there has never been
any scientific evidence that harvested apple fruit transmit fire blight.
Billions of apples have been exported worldwide, most of which without any
measures being imposed to protect against transmission of fire blight. On
March 1, 2002, the United States requested WTO dispute settlement
consultations with Japan on its fire blight restrictions on imported U.S.
apples. Consultations were unsuccessful, and a panel was established on
June 3, 2002.

The United States alleged that Japan's fire blight restrictions were
inconsistent with various provisions of the WTO Agreement on the Application
of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, including Japan's obligation not to
maintain import restrictions without sufficient scientific evidence and its
obligation to base any import restrictions on a risk assessment. In today's
report, the panel agreed with the United States on all of its major claims.

Under WTO rules, both Japan and the United States have an opportunity to
appeal today's report.