Several fresh produce commodities including pears, cherries and plums have made a list of U.S. products slated for Brazilian tariffs announced this week. The tariffs, slated to go into effect in the next 30 days, will affect over 100 U.S. manufacturing and agricultural products.

Brazil has initiated these tariffs as retaliation for what the World Trade Organization (WTO) ruled last year to be U.S. failure to comply with a previous WTO ruling on the legality of U.S. cotton subsidies. Although cotton is at the heart of this trade dispute, the WTO ruling allows Brazil to establish tariffs on any U.S. products it chooses. The total value of the Brazilian tariffs is said to total close to $600 million on products imported from the U.S.

These actions by Brazil come in the same week that marks the one-year anniversary of a vote by Congress to discontinue the Mexican Cross-Border Trucking Pilot Program. The program, established under the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and since delayed because of pressures from some lawmakers, the Teamsters Union and concerns over truck safety, allows Mexican trucks to operate on U.S. highways. However, once Congress cut off funding last year, violating provisions of NAFTA, Mexico responded by levying substantial retaliatory tariffs on variety of U.S. exports, totaling $2.4 billion. The tariff list included a number of fresh produce commodities, hitting those in the grape, cherry, pear and potato industries especially hard.

"United is working closely with many in the business and agriculture community to find a resolution to these trade sanctions," said Robert Guenther, United Fresh senior vice president of public policy. "Ultimately, it is now up to the administration to find a proper solution that will not allow U.S. exports including fresh produce to be hampered by inaction."

Last year, a bipartisan group of members of Congress, many of whom were known for their support of free trade, sent a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk, asking him to seek an end to the Mexican tariff dispute, but to date nothing has yet to be resolved.