The Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand (DCANZ) welcomes the launch of negotiations on a free trade agreement between New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
DCANZ Executive Director Kimberly Crewther says “We look forward to a high-quality FTA agreement that delivers certainty to New Zealand dairy exporters of duty-free access across all products”.
The United Arab Emirates is New Zealand’s 10th largest dairy market and accounted for 3.1% of exports, worth $744 million, in the year to March 2024. While dairy tariffs are typically 5% or less, a trade deal that agrees duty-free access for all dairy products will provide important long-term commercial certainty and support further deepening of the trade relationship.
“New Zealand exporters and UAE consumers will benefit from a deal that eliminates all dairy tariffs. We see no barrier to this being achieved from day one of an agreement given the low starting tariffs,” says Crewther.
DCANZ congratulates Trade Minister Todd McClay and New Zealand trade officials on this milestone. The commencement of the exploratory process for a negotiation by the previous Labour Government is also acknowledged. New Zealanders all benefit from bipartisan support for bringing down trade barriers and opening new export opportunities.