Garlic capitualtion

In its report on imports released Sept. 10 noted in a previous post, the USDA said that rising imports have helped fuel consumption increases: From the report's conclusion:

Since the early 1990s, overall U.S. consumption of fresh produce has risen continuously, while imports have satisfied an increasing share of this demand. For most products, imports have supplemented domestic production with the notable exception of garlic. U.S. consumers have benefited from imports because prices for most imported fresh produce have been relatively stable. Thus, imports have allowed consumers to eat more fruit and vegetables and enjoy year-round access to fresh produce.


Here is what the USDA had to say about China's increasing share of the U.S. garlic market:


Consumption of garlic, used primarily as a food-flavoring agent and condiment, soared, especially in the 1990s. U.S. per capita consumption of garlic increased from 1 pound in 1983-85 to 1.8 pounds in 1993-95 and 2.6 pounds in 2003-05. Imports, mainly from China, provided for those increases: The import share of consumption rose from 16.2 percent to 22 percent and 43.6 percent during the same periods (see table 4). Although garlic accounts for 1 to 2 percent of total U.S. fresh vegetable imports by value, rising imports from China have substantially changed the U.S. garlic industry since the early 1990s. Garlic exports from China, the world’s leading garlic producer, have grown so much and so rapidly that they have prompted trade disputes with the United States and other countries. China has many advantages in garlic production. The country has available labor and every type of growing region, resulting in exports of relatively low-priced fresh garlic year round. Other suppliers of U.S. garlic imports, such as Mexico and Argentina, supply garlic during the U.S. off-season—Mexico ships to the United States largely during the spring and early summer, and Argentina ships during the winter. Chinese garlic production, by contrast, is year round and overlaps the marketing window of U.S. producers, most of whom are in California. As a result, Chinese garlic imports put substantial competitive pressure on U.S. fresh garlic producers. China’s expanding share of the U.S. garlic import market also comes at the expense of Argentina and Mexico. Between 1990-92 and 2004-06, Mexico’s market share plunged from 50 percent to 16 percent by value, while Argentina’s dropped from 23 percent to 9 percent. In 1993, because of a sudden surge in Chinese fresh garlic imports, California growers formed the Fresh Garlic Producers Association and filed a dumping suit with the U.S. Department of Commerce, eventually winning their case.
In 1994, the Commerce Department applied a 376-percent tariff on Chinese garlic exporters, claiming they were dumping their product on the U.S. market. As a result, China’s share in the U.S. garlic import market dropped from 43 percent in 1993 to less than 1 percent for the rest of the 1990s. Since 2000, however, demand for lower priced Chinese garlic has increased, resulting in greater import volume and a rising share of the U.S. import market. Chinese garlic as a share of U.S. import value rose from 10 percent in 2001 to 78 percent in 2006. Domestic U.S. garlic acreage and production, after about two decades of strong and sustained growth, peaked in 1999 at 40,000 acres but have since declined. Between 2001-03 and 2004-06, acreage dropped from 34,333 acres to 30,340 acres, and production decreased from 592 million pounds to 498 million pounds. After battling with Chinese garlic imports for more than a decade, U.S. garlic producers appear to have capitulated in the garlic competition; instead of keeping Chinese garlic out of their market, now they are seeking other crops to replace garlic. In addition, California growers now use flavor, rather than price, as the focus of its marketing campaign. U.S.-grown garlic reportedly has a more robust flavor than Chinese garlic. As a result, despite an influx of cheaper imports, the value of the U.S. garlic crop totaled $169 million during 2004-06, up 4 percent from 2001-03. Except for garlic, China is a minor supplier to the United States—China accounted for 1.5 percent of the total value of U.S. fresh vegetable imports, with 88 percent of that being garlic in 2004-06. While U.S. producers of other fresh vegetables do not face direct competition from Chinese imports, they do face competition from Chinese products in other markets, primarily in Japan. However, China’s food safety, quality, and pesticide use in vegetables have been an issue with Japan, particularly since the 1990s (Huang and Gale, 2006).