Agriculture Dept. Says Wheat Imports Cost Taxpayers Millions

Wheat imports from Canada will cost U.S. taxpayers an estimated $682 million in subsidies for U.S. farmers, the Agriculture Department reported Thursday to a trade panel.

The $682 million represents payments to wheat growers over four years ending May, 1995, to make up for the difference between the government’s target price and the real price.

Imports from Canada are steadily growing and will continue to hold all U.S. wheat prices down an average of 9 cents a bushel through next year, said Keith Collins, chief economist for the department.

He noted that stagnant world trade, including lost sales to China and the former Soviet Union, have choked off U.S. opportunities for price-boosting exports.

But opponents of sanctions against Canada told the International Trade Commission that U.S. consumers will pay an invisible tax in the form of higher food prices if imports of wheat, especially durum, are curbed.

Durum goes into macaroni, spaghetti and other noodles. Opponents of sanctions say the U.S. demand for those foods is growing faster than U.S. farmers can supply the wheat, especially because of flood-induced shortages last year.

The hearing put the Administration in the position of arguing for restrictions under a U.S. law that will be invalid when a worldwide agreement to lower trade barriers takes effect next year.