A farmer is making wine from corn in a village of Shulan city, Northeast China's Jilin Province, on February 25, 2017 and distiller's grains are used for feed. Photo: VCG

China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said on Wednesday it will continue to impose anti-dumping and anti-subsidy tariffs on US distiller's dried grains with or without solubles (DDGs) - an animal feed ingredient - for another five years.

China first implemented the anti-dumping rate in 2017 at a rate of 42.2 percent to 53.7 percent, while anti-subsidy tariffs were raised to 11.2 percent to 12 percent, read a statement on the official MOFCOM website.

An expiration review for the measures started on January 11, 2022.

According to the investigation results, the ministry has ruled that it is necessary to continue to impose anti-dumping duties and countervailing duties on imports of the grain, read the statement.

The ethanol branch of the China Alcohol Industry Association said on Wednesday it welcomed the decision, noting that over the past five years, the duties have effectively curbed the unfair trade of DDGs from the US, and ensuring the sound development of the domestic industry.

According to a statement on the association's official WeChat account on Wednesday, since 2009, China has imported 6.82 million tons of DDGs from the US, far exceeding domestic production, which has had a serious impact on the domestic alcohol and DDGs market.

On November 19, 2015, the association filed an application with the MOFCOM on behalf of the domestic DDGs industry, requesting anti-dumping and countervailing investigations on imports of DDGs originating in the US.

If the anti-subsidy and anti-dumping measures are terminated, it is very likely that the US will again export large quantities of DDGs to China at a low price, and may cause damage to the domestic industry again, the statement said.

Global Times