The Office of the US Trade Representative is reallocating the unused country-specific quota allocations under the tariff-rate quotas (TRQs) on imported raw cane sugar for fiscal year 2023 (Oct. 1, 2022 – Sept. 30, 2023).

The announcement came on on March 13, 2023. TRQs allow countries to export specified quantities of a product to the US at a relatively low tariff but subject all imports of the product above a pre-determined threshold to a higher tariff.

The National Confectioners Association made a statement in response to the reallocation news:

“While there is still work to be done to fully correct current market conditions, this step towards easing the historically tight sugar supply offers an opportunity for a positive outcome for the confectionery industry. We are grateful to the USTR, as well as their partners at USDA, for their timely action to help navigate these challenging supply chain conditions and ensure that confectionery manufacturers can continue to employ the thousands of American workers who make America’s favorite treats.”

A little background of the TRQs:

On July 11, 2022, the USDA announced the establishment of the in-quota quantity for raw cane sugar for FY 2023. The in-quota quantity for the TRQ on raw cane sugar for FY 2023 is 1,117,195 metric tons raw value (MTRV), which is the minimum amount that the US is committed under the World Trade Organization Agreement.

Ten days later on July 21, 2022, USTR provided notice of country-by-country allocations of the FY 2023 in-quota quantity of the WTO TRQ for imported raw cane sugar. However, after consultation with quota holders, USTR has determined to reallocate 224,240 MTRV of the original TRQ quantity from those countries that have stated they do not plan to fill their FY 2023 allocated raw cane sugar quantities.  USTR is allocating the 224,240 MTRV to the following countries in the amounts below:

The allocations of the raw cane sugar WTO TRQ to countries that are net importers of sugar are conditioned on receipt of the appropriate verifications of origin. Certificates for quota eligibility must accompany imports from any country for which an allocation has been provided.