TRADE : State Raisin Growers Fight Tariff, Urge Boycott on South Korean Autos

It is a problem that isn’t likely to dry up and disappear.

California raisin growers are calling for a boycott of cars imported from South Korea--including models by Garden Grove-based Hyundai.

The Raisin Bargaining Assn., a 2,300-member group based in Fresno, recently called for the boycott until South Korea “drops or eliminates” its duty on California raisins, said Richard Garabedian, association president.

According to Garabedian, the duty increases the price of raisins in South Korea by more than 50%. Without it, California growers probably could double their current sales to South Korea of 5,000 tons a year, he said.

In addition to Hyundai, two other South Korean companies manufacture cars that are exported to the United States. They are KIA, which makes the Ford Festiva and Dae Woo, which makes Pontiac’s LeMans.

“We took the biggest-ticket item that South Korea has,” Garabedian said, explaining why autos are the boycott’s target. “It’s wrong for the government to have such a duty against a commodity they don’t grow in their own country.”

Hyundai could not be reached for comment Wednesday.