Argentine lemon exporters fear new U.S. administration

摘要

The Bush administration has been slow to reverse sanitation-based bans on lemon imports from Argentina, and exporters fear that the incoming Obama administration will halt the process for at least a year. Fresh lemon exports to the United States have been banned since 2001 due to concerns over plant diseases subject to quarantine (see FCN Aug. 15, 2005, Page 15). "I believe that there is still hope, but don't foresee any headway soon," says Luis Otero, a leading shareholder in San Miguel, Argentina's leading lemon producing company. "If the United States is not seriously interest in overcoming obstacles to a negotiated settlement at present, I don't believe that the interest will emerge any time soon."