SAO PAULO, BRAZIL — Brazil is planning on a 750,000-tonne tariff-free quota for wheat imports from countries outside of the South American Mercosur trade bloc starting in November, Reuters reported.
Enforcing the tariff-free quota could help the country add new suppliers, such as the U.S. and Russia, said Flavio Bettarello, the agriculture ministry’s assistant secretary for trade and foreign relations, during an industry conference.
He told Reuters it could be introduced via an order from the Special Secretariat for Foreign Trade and International Affairs or from the Executive Secretariat of Foreign Trade, Reuters reported.
Abitrigo, Brazil’s millers’ association, is in favor of the quota, which is part of a series of measures to open up Brazil’s economy and increase its share in global agricultural trade.
Brazil has a 10% tariff on all wheat imports from outside Mercosur. The country was the world’s sixth largest wheat importer in 2018.
Brazil is expected to buy 7.2 million tonnes of wheat from foreign suppliers this year, Reuters said. Through July, the nation had imported 3.87 million tonnes of wheat.
