The Global Reach of Local Butchers
High tariffs and strict inspection laws in Germany trigger a sharp decline in American meat exports, forcing local butchers to lobby for policy change.
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Washington, Aug. 20.—Germany’s high tariff rates, obnoxious meat inspection law, and the law forbidding the importation of live stock, are having a disastrous effect on the meat trade to that country. During the months of April and May, comparing years 1903 and 1902, the imports of meat and meat products into Germany declined nearly 50 per cent, according to Deputy Consul General Hanouver at Frankfort. The importations for this period in 1902 were 25,523 tons, against 13,365 tons in 1903—a decrease of 11,958 tons. The butchers, in their annual national convention lately held at Potsdam, adopted a resolution to petition the government to ameliorate the order against allowing live stock to come in from foreign countries and to reduce the customs duties on imported cattle and hogs.
“Germany’s high tariff rates, obnoxious meat inspection law, and the law forbidding the importation of live stock, are having a disastrous effect on the meat trade to that country.”
International trade policy and agricultural protectionism remain perennial friction points for Pacific Northwest producers. Just as Walla Walla's butchers in 1903 felt the sting of German protectionist laws, modern growers in the region frequently grapple with the volatility of global export markets and shifting tariff regimes.
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