Following the start to agricultural trade negotiations last week at the U.S.-India Trade Policy Forum in New Delhi, the U.S. Apple Association has said more needs to be done to ensure U.S. apple growers can once again compete in the Indian market.

Since the U.S. imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from India in 2018—resulting in retaliatory tariffs by India on U.S. apples and other exports—total tariffs on U.S. apples have reached 70 percent and India’s purchases of U.S. apples have plummeted 79 percent.

“We appreciate U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai’s efforts to kickstart tricky agricultural trade negotiations with India. She has our full support,” said USApple President and CEO Jim Bair.

“But for U.S. apple growers to fully get back into that market, the U.S. government needs to remove tariffs on steel and aluminum from India so that India will remove its tariffs on apples.”

In most years, U.S. apple growers export one-third of their crop, valued at about $1 billion. Prior to India’s retaliatory tariffs taking hold it was the second largest market for U.S. apple growers and was quickly growing. 

“U.S. growers were just innocent bystanders at a fight that didn’t involve them,” said Bair. “Up until the U.S. imposed steel and aluminum tariffs on India, we were competing and winning in that market.”