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African Swine Fever (ASF) remains a significant challenge in the Dominican Republic. Despite initial emergency response efforts, the disease is now endemic, with outbreaks showing an upward trend in 2024 and continuing to consistently appear throughout the country.

Poland opposes the use of genetic engineering in agriculture. Although the current regulatory framework technically allows genetically engineered (GE) seeds to enter commerce, the law stipulates they cannot be planted.

The Dominican Republic continues to be a strong market for U.S. bulk agricultural products (e.g., corn), intermediate goods (e.g., soybean meal), and high value consumer-oriented products (e.g., processed food products), reaching a total export value of $2 billion in 2023.

Access to the benefits of modern agricultural biotechnology in the Caribbean Basin remains stifled by the unfinished work of implementing a science-based, risk-management approach to regulate its use.

According to USCB, U.S. suppliers shipped $376 million of U.S. food and agriculture to Poland in 2023. However, according to Poland’s Central Statistical Office (CSO), which measures trade by country of origin and, therefore, reflects both direct and indirect trade, Poland sourced upwards of $740 million of U.S. food and agriculture in 2023.

The Parliament of Poland extended until January 1, 2030, exemptions of provisions under the 2006 Feed Act to ban the use of genetically engineered (GE) feed ingredients. Poland is a major import of soybean meal, including GE meal, with imports reaching $1.5 billion each year.

On October 7, 2024, the Government of the Dominican Republic announced a proposed a tax reform bill that could have significant implications for U.S. agricultural exports, particularly in the pork, beef, and beverage sectors.

In the Caribbean region, sales value in the retail grocery sector increased by 3 percent in 2023. This is due in part to the rise in tourism in many markets, which is boosting economic growth. The largest grocery retail markets are Trinidad and Tobago, Guadeloupe, and the Bahamas.

The Dominican Republic (DR) is the third-largest export market in the Western Hemisphere for U.S. consumer-oriented products. In 2023, U.S. exports of these products to the DR exceeded $1 billion, largely due to strong demand from foreign tourism and the retail sector.

For marketing year October 2024/September 2025 (MY 2024/25), Post forecasts overall sugar production in the Dominican Republic (DR) to increase to 520,000 metric tons (MT) due to better-than-expected rainfall patterns.

This report describes the major export certificates required by the Government of the Dominican Republic (GoDR) for imports of food and agricultural products. No substantive changes were published as of June 2024.

As tourists flock back to the Caribbean in larger numbers and island economies regain their footing after being challenged by global inflation, competition, and other headwinds, opportunities for U.S. suppliers are slowly emerging. While hurdles remain present on the horizon, U.S. suppliers are finding resilient Caribbean buyers to be excellent partners on the road to commercial success.