PARIS, Feb 13 (Reuters) – French chemical company Eurolysine has filed a complaint with the European Union saying that a reduction in prices of Chinese lysine, used in animal feed, has made penalties to stop unfair pricing ineffective, it said on Friday.
The move highlights wider concerns over cheap Chinese imports affecting several sectors and stoking trade spats between the world’s second-largest economy and the 27-member bloc.
Eurolysine, the EU’s sole fermentation-based amino acid producer, said market conditions for lysine, valine and tryptophan had worsened for more than six months, arguing that Chinese prices have fallen below production costs.
Lysine, valine and tryptophan are essential amino acids used in animal feed to support growth, protein synthesis and stress regulation in livestock, making stable pricing critical for Europe’s feed and farming sectors.
Lysine prices are 20% lower than in July 2024, while tryptophan has dropped 60% over a year, Eurolysine, part of French agrifood group Avril, said.
The EU imposed provisional anti-dumping duties on Chinese lysine in early 2025 after an initial complaint filed in April 2024 by Metex Noovistago, now renamed Eurolysine. However, the company said Chinese exporters cut prices further, effectively neutralising the tariffs.
Eurolysine said it filed a new complaint with the European Commission on February 11, seeking an anti-absorption investigation to ensure tariffs reflect continued undercutting by Chinese suppliers.
The China Chamber of Commerce to the European Union (CCCEU) was not immediately available for comment.
Eurolysine also pointed to the EU’s decision to impose definitive anti-dumping duties on Chinese valine starting February 14, saying the measure would need close monitoring to ensure it was not circumvented in a similar way.
(Reporting by Sybille de La HamaideEditing by Mark Potter)
