Washington agriculture, exports and China

Hector Castro
WSDA Communications 

For farmers, ranchers and those producing food and drink in Washington, international markets are crucial to maintaining a robust agriculture industry.

Washington exports about 30 percent of the food and agricultural products produced here, and the third largest market for our products is China. This is one reason WSDA is closely following developments regarding increased tariffs proposed on some imports from China, followed by the response from China to impose higher tariffs on 128 U.S. products.

Eight Washington agricultural products are on the list China has marked as subject to higher tariffs. Together, those products generated $120 million in revenue in 2017 in exports to China alone. Statistics in both charts below are based on the calendar year and are estimates based on data from World Trade Atlas.

Washington ag products possibly subject to higher tariffs by China

Product	2017 value in export to China
Sweet Cherries	$99.7 million
Fresh Apples	$17.6 million
Wine	$1.6 million
Fresh Pears	$697,000
Dried Fruit	$544,500
Frozen Fruits & Berries	$181,700
Fresh Cranberries	$92,400
Fresh Plums	$6,700

Two of the products listed, sweet cherries and fresh apples, are also among Washington’s top 10 ag exports to China. In fact, China is now the number one market for Washington sweet cherries. All told, Washington ag and food exports to China generated $594 million in export revenue in 2017. 

Top 10 exports to China in 2017

	Exports	Dollar Value	Ranking
1	Fish and Seafood	$154.5 million	#2 market
2	Hay	$103.6 million	#3 market
3	Sweet Cherries	$99.7 million	#1 market
4	Frozen French Fries	$54.4 million	#3 market
5	White Wheat	$45.1 million	#5 market
6	Dairy Products	$25 million	#5 market
7	Fresh Apples	$17.6 million	#10 market
8	Seeds (fruit, veg, forage)	$12.3 million	#2 market
9	Frozen Vegetables	$10.5 million	#2 market
10	Fishmeal	$10.3 million	#1 market

Like others in the agriculture industry, WSDA will continue to monitor the developing tariff situation. The negotiations on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the recent completion of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) agreement without U.S. involvement are also expected to affect the agriculture industry, both in Washington and around the county.

With trade being so crucial, WSDA will continue to work with the agriculture industry and our federal partners to make sure that the voice of farmers, ranchers and food producers is heard.

Work also continues on maintaining and developing export markets for our state. Members of the WSDA International Marketing Program are already scheduled to participate in two trade activities involving China - one in May and another in June.

Bringing together women of the seafood industry to connect producers and buyers

Hannah Street
Communications


A trade mission organized by WSDA’s International Marketing Program and the USDA Agricultural Trade Office in Shanghai brought together women leaders in the seafood industry from both China and the U.S. to discuss the logistics of potential business relationships.

The trade mission group poses at the National Oyster Company on June 23, 2017.

The group of a dozen mostly women met Friday at the agency’s main office in Olympia for a round-table discussion that included representatives from Washington shellfish operations and potential buyers from China. Afterwards, the group paid visits to local shellfish farms and operations. The previous day, WSDA staff had partnered with the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute (ASMI) to bring the group of buyers to meet with women in other seafood industry sectors in the Seattle area.

China is one of Washington state’s top agriculture trading partners. In 2016, China imported $683 million worth of Washington food and agriculture products, with seafood, wheat and french fries topping their buying list.

Interest between the two groups at the Friday’s meeting was mutual. Producers are eager to expand their reach, and there’s a fresh food market in China with room for the unique flavors of Pacific Coast shellfish.

“Chinese consumers want high-quality shellfish and more of it,” said Ren Chen, Director of Strategic Sourcing at Shanghai Yiguo E-commerce Company.

Challenges include cultural differences and variances of shellfish knowledge that will test marketing and distribution skills. For example, one attendee explained testing practices differ between American and Chinese regulatory groups because consumers in both countries eat seafood differently.

Dungeness crabs, for example, have encountered testing holdup because Americans eat crab meat but Chinese eat the entire crab.

The group discusses trade and challenges women face in the shellfish industry
during a roundtable meeting on June 23, 2017.

The Chinese businesses included consumer grocery platforms and large-scale, regulatory entities with mainstream e-commerce and retail clients. Washington companies included local shellfish giants, like Taylor Shellfish, and niche companies like Set & Drift Shellfish which markets Fjordlux oysters.

Regardless of business model, the Chinese representatives emphasized hyper-fresh and hyper-available products. Smooth importing is crucial; getting seafood from the docks to stores is one battle. Familiarizing consumers with Pacific Northwest seafood products is another.

“Chinese are not very sophisticated about oysters, and there isn’t as much knowledge about Washington oysters,” said Helen Gao of Shanghai Gfresh.

To increase demand of Washington oysters in an overseas market dominated by the economy and familiarity of French oysters, education, like taste cards with flavor profiles and taste testing, is key.

In addition to product acclimation, marketing and selling the imported seafood must fit seamlessly with the Chinese consumer’s way of life. Americans do most grocery shopping once per week, whereas Chinese do their grocery shopping daily, at most going three days between trips, said Gao.

Another difference is that American markets can handle large shipments of shellfish because Americans buy large quantities, especially frozen products. Chinese representatives agreed, however, that their consumers would want smaller, consumer-friendly packaging within large shipments.

“It was amazing to see so many women in leadership positions come together to discuss these issues,” said Rianne Perry, manager of the International Marketing Program.

Representative from USDA, WSDA and ASMI pose in Seattle on June 22, 2017.

Pest-free logs to China, working safely are top priorities for WSDA inspectors

Scott Brooks
Plant Services Program

WSDA staff conducting inspections at Washington’s busy log export facilities have two goals in mind during their work shift. One is working safely in an often hectic, noisy port environment and the other is to provide our customers with good service.

Environmental specialists with the Plant Services Program recently met in Tacoma to discuss both situations. 

Good customer service means ensuring exported logs are free of prohibited pests for China and other trading partners. Washington supplies more logs to China than any other state. Last year, Plant Services staff certified nearly 245 million board feet of logs to China. A typical log vessel holds about 6 million board feet of logs. The logs are used for construction in China, after being milled into lumber, forms and scaffolding.

Hitchhiking pests
Before the logs leave the port, WSDA inspectors look closely for hitchhiking wood-boring pests, like beetles or Pinewood nematodes. Core samples of the log are collected and analyzed at a WSDA lab in Prosser to test for the nematode, a process required by China. If all goes well, WSDA issues the exporter a phytosanitary certificate for the shipment. Though evidence of bark beetles is not uncommon, Washington logs have always tested negative for the presence of Pinewood nematode.

At the Tacoma meeting, the group reviewed inspection protocols and safety concerns. There can be many things to watch out for at congested port log yards. Logs are stacked into high decks to save space and log moving equipment is constantly sorting, stacking and loading logs throughout the yard. In this environment, it’s important for our inspectors to be seen and stay safe. 

Safety precautions
An orange reflective vest helps, but WSDA also requires that our personnel be escorted during inspections and that log moving equipment cease operations within 100 feet o

f the inspector when they are on site. Inspectors wear hard hats, steel toed boots and carry a cell phone in case they get into trouble.

Besides Tacoma, Plant Services’ staff works at six other ports: Longview, Olympia, Port Angeles, Seattle, Everett and the Port of Grays Harbor. They also are called out to private log yards.

The variety of commodities inspected by Plant Services personnel is extensive and involves logs, lumber, nursery stock, cut greens, grains, hay varieties and many minor specialty crops. Our team is dedicated to work with Washington exporters to assure consistency in applying federal export rules and policy. Working safely and focusing inspections on pests of concern are two major ways WSDA helps keep foreign trade running smoothly.