Day 068 - 16 Dec 94 - Page 62
1 cost you 25 per cent". When NAFTA was ratified by every
2 single political legal department on January 1st, that was
3 part of the agreement that there would be no barriers.
4 That is why it is called a Free Trade Agreement, so no
5 tariffs, so that 20 per cent, 25 per cent disappeared.
6
7 MR. MORRIS: Say, for example, beef from Mexico could be
8 exported to the USA?
9 A. Now it can, that is correct.
10
11 Q. It could be before you, but you just had to pay a bit
12 extra?
13 A. It could be before -- before when?
14
15 Q. I do not know. You tell me.
16
17 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Remember, Mr. Morris, that what we are really
18 concerned with is the possible export from Guatemala and
19 Costa Rica to the USA of beef from 1,000 countries for
20 McDonald's in the USA and the possible export of beef from
21 Brazil to McDonald's anywhere but, specifically, you have
22 got your hooks into export to one country. All this may be
23 jolly interesting. I can see if you go through several
24 links of the chain it might be relevant, but remember that
25 is what we are looking for at the end of the day.
26
27 MR. MORRIS: I know. (To the witness): How long has it been
28 legal to import from Mexico beef from Mexico into the USA,
29 whatever the tariffs were?
30 A. I do not know.
31
32 Q. How long was the pre-NAFTA arrangement when it was 20 per
33 cent - five years?
34 A. A couple of years.
35
36 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Do you know what the situation was before
37 then?
38 A. Yes, coming from Mexico I can explain this in more
39 detail. Mexico is not -----
40
41 Q. Do not explain it in much detail. Just say in one sentence
42 what the situation was two years before NAFTA, if you know
43 what it is?
44 A. The situation was that it was very expensive, the beef
45 in Mexico, and so we were looking for an opportunity to
46 import product, beef, into Mexico from the US or from
47 Australia. That was the situation. We built a plant, this
48 plant, three years ago, if I remember correctly.
49
50 Q. I am going to stop you there, because you were merely asked
51 after NAFTA you could export in Mexico to USA, beef could
52 go in the opposite direction without any kind of tariff.
53 You said that two years before that there was a tax or
54 import duty (call it what you will) of 20 to 25 per cent.
55 What I am asking is before then could you move beef across
56 the border from Mexico into California or into Texas or the
57 reverse direction or anywhere into the United States or in
58 the reverse direction, provided you paid enough duty?
59 A. I do not know. I got involved in this process at the
60 NAFTA time.
