New Zealand Secures Historic Free Trade Deal with GCC, Boosting Dairy Export Opportunities

Kimberly Crewther, Executive Director of DCANZ, highlighted that New Zealand exported approximately $1.9 billion in dairy products to the GCC last year, making it the country’s second-largest dairy market after China. “The elimination of already low tariffs on key dairy products provides significant commercial security for exporters in this valuable market,” Crewther noted.

DCANZ praised Trade Minister Todd McClay and the New Zealand negotiating team for reaching this long-awaited agreement, originally initiated in 2007. Crewther commended the government’s perseverance and commitment to securing this deal, marking New Zealand as the first major dairy exporter to secure a free trade agreement with the GCC.

McClay acknowledged the achievement as a milestone for New Zealand’s trade relations in the Middle East. “This agreement, the GCC’s highest-quality deal to date and its first with a major agricultural exporter, provides duty-free access for 99% of New Zealand’s exports over 10 years,” McClay stated. He further noted that, alongside the recently finalized NZ-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), 51% of New Zealand’s exports to the region will be tariff-free from the start, further cementing New Zealand’s trade footprint in the Gulf region.