G/SG/N/6/ZAF/3  
 
13 March 2013  
(13-1377)  Page: 1/2  
Committee on Safeguards  Original: English  
 
  NOTIFICATION UNDER ARTICLE 12.1(A) OF THE AGREEMENT  
ON SAFEGUARDS ON INITIATI ON OF AN INVESTIGATION  
AND THE REASONS FOR IT 
SOUTH AFRICA 
(Frozen Potato Chips) 
 
The following communication, dated 12 March 2013, is being circulated at the request of the 
Delegation of South Africa.  
_______________ 
 
 Pursuant to Article 12.1(a) of the Agreement on Sa feguards, South Africa hereby gives notification 
of the initiation of a safeguard investigation on the imports of frozen potato chips. 
 1  The date when the investigation was initiated 
 
The investigation was initiated on 8 March 2013. The notice of initiation by the investigating authority was published through notice No. 175 in Government Gazette  No. 36207 on 
8 March 2013.
* 
 
2  The product subject to the investigation  
The subject product is described as frozen pota to chips, classifiable under tariff subheading 
2004.10.90.   
3  The reasons for the initiation of investigation 
 
i. The investigation was initiated pursuant to an application by McCain foods (SA) (Pty) 
Ltd (the Applicant), on behalf of the SACU industry. The Application is further 
supported by Nature's choice products (P ty) Ltd and Lamberts bay foods, the other 
producers of frozen potato chips in the SACU. 
The claim is that the subject product is bein g imported into the SACU market in such 
increasing quantities in absolute terms and relative to SACU production and under 
such conditions, to be causing serious injury to the SACU industry.   
 
ii. Prima facie information on which the investigation was initiated: 
The Commission found that the Applicant submitted prima facie  information to 
indicate that the net volume of frozen potato chips imports increased sharply both in absolute terms and relative to domestic production, as the unit price of the imported 
product declined. The net volume of imports was determined by subtracting the 
SACU industry's own imports from total imports. There after 10% was deducted 
                                               
* A copy of Notice No. 175 published in the Government Gazette  has been submitted electronically.  To 
consult this document, please contact Ms Hilary Budd ( hilary.budd@wto.org ) or Ms Delphine Naville 
(delphine.naville@wto.org ) of the Rules Division. G/SG/N/6/ZAF/3 
 
- 2 - 
 
  from the total imports as per the estimates provided by the applicant indicating that 
the tariff subheading includes other potato products other than frozen potato chips.  
 Serious injury and causal link 
 
The Applicant alleges and submitted prima facie information indicating that it is experiencing 
serious injury in the form of a decline in sales volume and market share. It further alleges that it is 
experiencing losses in light of the recent, sudde n, sharp and significant surge in imports.   
 The Applicant further alleges that there is an oversupply of frozen potato chips in the world 
market, that there is a recent, sudden, sharp and significant surge in imports of frozen potato 
chips and that they are exported to the SACU at prices which will have a further suppressing effect 
on the Applicant's prices.  
It further alleges that the significant increase in  the market share of the imported frozen potato 
chips in the SACU has been at the expense of a corresponding decrease in the SACU industry's market's share.  
 
On this basis the Commission found that prima facie information was submitted to indicate that 
the SACU industry was suffering serious injury which could be causally linked to the recent, sudden, sharp and significant surge in  imported frozen potato chips. 
 
4  Further information  
Interested parties must make themselves known within a period of 20 days after the initiation of 
the investigation.  
Any information which the interested parties may wish to submit in writing and any request for a 
hearing before the Commission that they may wish to put forward should be submitted within 20 days following the initiation of this investigation to the Directorate: Trade Remedies at the following address: The DTI Campus, 77 Meintjies Street, Sunnyside Pretoria, Block Uuzaji, Ground 
Floor, tel: +27 12 394 3600, fax +27 12 394 0518. 
 If part of the information provided is of a confidential nature, the party concerned should give the 
grounds justifying confidentiality and furnish public summaries of such information, which should 
be as detailed as possible. In instances that a public summary cannot be provided a sworn statement must be provided stating the reasons why the information cannot be summarized.  This 
requirement is designed to secure transparen cy and due access by all the parties to the 
information relating to this investigation. If the summaries are not duly provided and in the absence of just cause, ITAC may disregard the information deemed to be confidential.  
 
__________