LINK: Defining Anemic: In Five Years, 2018 Farm Bill USDA Provision For Cuba Had No Use Of FMD And Two Uses Of MAP. Approximately 90 U.S.-Based Entities Could Have Participated. That’s A 2.2% Use Rate. Feb 3, 2023
Leading to the enactment of the 2018 Farm Bill, most observers reasonably concluded that legislative advocates- within the United States Congress and organizations in Washington DC and outside of the beltway would have prominently teed-up at least one high-profile applicant to publicize in advance they would use the provision if it became law or at least one high-profile applicant to immediately and publicly request funding when the 2018 Farm Bill became law on 21 December 2018.
NOTE: The global pandemic, COVID-19, commenced in early 2020 and continued to impact travel worldwide through 2022- and in some countries into early 2023. The government of the Republic of Cuba did implement arrival restrictions during these periods; and the United States implemented travel restrictions during these periods. Thus, there were non-marketplace disincentives for commerce-related visits to the Republic of Cuba by delegations from the United States. However, they remained unconstrained 2019, 2022, and 2023.
The cash-in-advance terms were supported by United States-based exporters while opposed by United States-based agricultural commodity and food product trade promotion organizations. United States-based exporters were concerned in 2000 and remain concerned in 2023 that with Republic of Cuba government-operated entities maintaining a chronic inability to abide by payment terms other than cash-in-advance, more prudent to retain a perhaps smaller market share with no payment issues rather than a larger market share with endemic, and necessarily publicly-disclosed payment issues.
The most significant impact of an anemic number of MAP/FMD requests and usage in 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 is what the lack of interest portends for other legislative efforts in the United States Congress relating to the Republic of Cuba, particularly those focused upon changes to cash-in-advance payment terms for agricultural commodity and food product exports from the United States to the Republic of Cuba required by the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000 (TSREEA). The question opponents will ask: “If authorizing MAP/FMD for Cuba was so important, why have so few organizations used it?”
The cash-in-advance terms were supported by United States-based exporters while opposed by United States-based agricultural commodity and food product trade promotion organizations. United States-based exporters were concerned in 2000 and remain concerned in 2023 that with Republic of Cuba government-operated entities maintaining a chronic inability to abide by payment terms other than cash-in-advance, more prudent to retain a perhaps smaller market share with no payment issues rather than a larger market share with endemic, and necessarily publicly-disclosed payment issues.
Under the Market Access Program, USDA provides competitive, cost-share assistance to U.S. exporters and agricultural, fish, and forest product trade organizations for international marketing and promotion of U.S. commodities and products. More information about the program and the FY 2024 funding opportunity is available at: https://www.fas.usda.gov/programs/market-access-program-map.
Under the Foreign Market Development Program, USDA partners with nonprofit agricultural and forest product trade associations to build longer-term international demand for U.S. commodities. More information about the program and the FY 2024 funding opportunity is available at: https://www.fas.usda.gov/programs/foreign-market-development-program-fmd.”
