On 7 March, the European Commission adopted a regulation to increase the EU import duty on ‘husked’ or brown rice from €30 to €65 per tonne (t).
The Commission took this decision because of the sharp increase in imports of husked rice or brown rice (non- basmati) during the first six months of this marketing year. The import duty was set at €65 from 8 March.
The Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Community and the United States of America relating to the method of calculation of applied duties to husked rice, approved by EU Council Decision 2005/476/EC, establishes a method for the calculation of applied duties for imports of husked rice. Rice import duties are reviewed twice a year, on 1 March and on 1 September. The Commission has noted that import licences for husked rice (excluding import licences for basmati rice) have been issued in respect of 265,824 tonnes for the period from 1 September 2018 to 28 February 2019. The import duty on husked rice will therefore be amended. This import duty had not changed since March 2012.
The legislation in place highlights that if the level of imports for husked rice in the first six months of the marketing year is below 191,113 tonnes, the duty should be fixed at €30 per tonne, which was the case until the decision of 7 March. Where it exceeds 191,113 tonnes, but does not exceed 224, 839 tonnes, the duty should be fixed at €42.5 per tonne. If it exceeds 258,565 tonnes, the duty needs be set at €65 per tonne.
The new law will initially be in effect until the next revision on September 1, 2019. In the meantime, the European Commission is monitoring the market closely. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)