WENATCHEE, WASHINGTON – The Washington Apple Commission will be receiving $8,457,600 through the USDA Agricultural Trade Promotion (ATP) funding program designed to help mitigate the damages from the additional trade tariffs on imports of Washington apples in several key export markets.
The Washington Apple Commission submitted detailed proposals in November 2018, and on January 31st, 2019 received notification that USDA would award $8.4 million to the apple export promotional organization. Agricultural Trade Promotion funding is a cost-share program and requires a minimum 10% industry match, therefore WAC will need to provide $845,760 in industry funds. It is one of the 57 organizations awarded additional funding by the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service from a budget of $200,000,000.
In February, the Washington Apple Commission received details regarding the countries and activities from the proposals that were approved for ATP funding. The strategy for Agricultural Tarde Promotion funding will focus on the following:
* Implementing consumer brand building activities in Mexico, China and India to create added value for Washington apple in light of the tariff impact on retail pricing.
* Introduce the new Cosmic Crisp variety to the Canadian market. The new variety will be commercially available in the fall of 2019, and the WAC proposal includes activities to introduce the variety to Canadian consumers.
* Increase consumer messaging around health and trust in Southeast Asia, a growing market for Washington apples.
The Agricultural Trade Promotion program is a one-time, non-renewable funding source. Funding for the approved activities will be spread out over an 18-24 month period starting next season. ATP is a part of the Trump administration’s $12 billion three-part trade aid package designed to alleviate adverse effects of ongoing trade conflicts on agricultural producers.
The Washington Apple Commission is a promotional organization dedicated to serving the Washington apple industry by increasing consumer demand through innovative marketing and promotions in international markets.
For more information on the Washington Apple Commission, visit our website www.bestapples.com.
