Now Open: antidumping investigation on Brazilian imports of milk powder from Argentina and Uruguay
In brief
SECEX (the Brazilian Secretariat of International Trade) initiated, on 11 December 2024, an antidumping investigation on Brazilian imports of unfractionated milk powder, whole or skim, from Argentina and Uruguay, commonly classified under the NCM codes 0402.10.10, 0402.10.90, 0402.21.10, 0402.21.20, 0402.29.10, and 0402.29.20.
The original text of the Official Notice of initiation of the investigation (in Portuguese) is available in the following link.
Relevance of stakeholder participation
Active participation of importers, exporters, and any other interested parties in the investigation may be decisive in securing a more favorable outcome. Interested parties can request to be admitted as parties in the investigation until 31 December 2024*, provided that they demonstrate the extent to which they could be affected by the imposition of the antidumping duty.
- Deadline for replying to the Importer’s Questionnaire: 30 days as of acknowledgement of receipt (presumed 3 days after the date of electronic transmission by the authority);
- Deadline for replying to the Exporter’s Questionnaire: 30 days as of acknowledgement of receipt (presumed 7 days after the date of electronic transmission by the authority)
Usually, a public interest assessment may be requested only after the conclusion of the trade remedies investigation, as established by SECEX Ordinance No. 282/2023 (additional information is available in our Legal Alert on the subject).
More detailsThe product under investigation has already been levied with antidumping measures imposed by the Brazilian government in the past. In 2001, antidumping duties were imposed on Brazilian imports of milk powder from New Zealand, the European Union, and Uruguay. In the two subsequent sunset reviews, ended in 2007 and 2013, the duties were extended for five years for New Zealand and the European Union. In the third sunset review, which ended in 2019, the measures were not extended as there was no proof that the dumping in exports from these origins would likely resume.
The new investigation was launched at the request of the Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock of Brazil (Confederação da Agricultura e Pecuária do Brasil – CNA), as a union representing 100% of the country’s fresh milk production.
- Investigated product: unfractionated milk powder, whole or skim. According to the Normative Instruction No. 53 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAPA), of 1 October 2018, “milk powder is the product obtained by dehydrating cow’s milk, whole, skim or partially skim and fit for human consumption, using technologically appropriate processes”.
- Distribution channels / form of presentation:
i. Institutional or B2B markets, where dairy industries trade with each other or with industries in other food segments, such as chocolate, ice cream, cookies, as well as the pharmaceutical industry for the production of food supplements, nutraceuticals and/or infant formulas. It includes government purchases in the context of official programs (Food Acquisition Program – milk; National School Feeding Program – PNAE). In these channels, the product is generally sold in 25kg bags packed on pallets containing between 45 and 48 bags, totaling around 1,200kg.
ii. Direct sales to wholesalers and/or retailers, including supermarkets and hypermarkets, online retail stores and convenience stores, to serve the end consumer. In this channel, the product is sold in smaller packages of varying sizes, including cardboard boxes containing cans or sachets of between 800g and 400g.
- Dumping margins:
- Argentina: 4.19 USD/kg / 118%;
- Uruguay: 4.20 USD/kg / 113.1%.
