More citrus growers arrive at trade talks

They didn't come with riot gear or protest signs. They weren't police or marchers.

They were citrus growers and their representatives.

About a dozen of them arrived in Miami on Wednesday, greeted by swarms of police who were preparing for a labor march and rally today that's expected to be the biggest in Miami since negotiations for a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) agreement got under way over the weekend.

The citrus growers and their representatives have joined a few others in the industry who have been in Miami since Monday to keep a watchful eye on and give comment on negotiations for an FTAA in the city that calls itself "the gateway to Latin America."

Now that more Florida citrus growers are in Miami, they plan to make their voices heard by the 34 ministers negotiating the FTAA, a proposed treaty for the Western Hemisphere that would create the largest trading bloc in the world, excluding Cuba.

The citrus group hopes to convince hemispheric leaders -- who meet today and Friday for a negotiating session on the FTAA in Miami -- not to remove the tariff on Brazilian orange juice. Many Florida growers say it's the only thing keeping the industry alive in this state.

At stake is a $9 billion commercial citrus industry in Florida and an industry that pumps more than $500 million into Southwest Florida's economy.

Two of the citrus growers who reached Miami on Wednesday are from Southwest Florida: Tom Jones, director of government affairs for Silver Strand, a Barron Collier Partnership; and George Austin, a small grower and citrus consultant.

"I think for a lot of us this is an educational experience," said Austin, a second-generation citrus farmer who owns about 200 acres of groves in Lee and Hendry counties. "We haven't been to these types of events before. We want to get an understanding of what goes on. We want to have the opportunity to convey our message."

Austin got to Miami around 4 p.m. Others arriving Wednesday were Squire Smith, president of Florida Citrus Mutual, the industry's largest trade group; Joe Davis Jr., a large grower in Central Florida; and Dan Richey, an East Coast citrus grower and packer and commissioner with Florida's Department of Citrus.

The reinforcements wasted no time bending the ears of trade ministers. Most attended a by-invitation-only reception in honor of the 34 ministers at The Vizcaya Museum and Gardens on Wednesday night. It was a chance to talk to ministers and their staffs directly.

"Most of the negotiators understand our concerns," said Andy LaVigne, executive vice president and CEO of Florida Citrus Mutual. "You do continue to have people come into the process and leave the process. So we are constantly reminding them why our situation is different."

Florida's situation is different because this state and Brazil are the top producers of orange juice, and if the tariff on Brazil's juice is lifted it would create a monopoly, which goes against the ideals of free trade and would not benefit consumers, he said.

For the past three days, LaVigne has been working behind the scenes to get support for keeping the tariff on Brazil's juice, which equals about 30 cents a gallon.

He's hoping to find allies in developing countries that produce citrus, such as Mexico, Costa Rica and Belize.

He participated in the Americas Business Forum, which gave more than 800 business leaders from around the hemisphere the opportunity to have a say in the trade negotiations.

Participants, who discussed everything from government procurement policies to market access and agricultural subsidies, made their recommendations to ministers on Wednesday.

One of the recommendations coming from business leaders is to have a four-pronged phase-out of tariffs. Some would go away immediately, some in five years, some in 10 years and others would be around longer. LaVigne is hopeful that ministers will support the idea, and that the citrus tariff on Brazil's juice will be put in the "longer" category.

Robert Coker, a vice president for Southern Gardens Citrus and U.S. Sugar Corp. in Clewiston, feels the same way and hopes sugar lands in the last category, too.

At the FTAA meeting, he has been battling on two fronts. As a representative for one of the largest citrus growers in the state and one of the largest sugar producers in Florida, he's fighting against the tariff on Brazilian juice and against a reduction in tariffs on sugar imported into the United States. He hoped to see business leaders make a more definitive recommendation to ministers on products that should be excluded from the FTAA, and that citrus and sugar would be among them.

But the group that discussed agriculture didn't reach a consensus, and agreed only that some tariffs should be eliminated immediately. They did not decide which ones.

If the FTAA reduces sugar tariffs, Coker said the U.S. industry will be at a real disadvantage because international tariffs throughout the world will still be high. It could mean lost jobs in Southwest Florida and that's why about 60 workers with U.S. Sugar in Clewiston plan to participate in the 2.2-mile anti-FTAA labor march through downtown Miami today that could involve more than 20,000 protesters.

Florida sugar workers, who are riding over to Miami in two buses, will wear bright orange vests and carry radios in the march. According to organizers, their job will be to "maintain order and peace," as they're fighting for their jobs.