On July 14, USCIB announced that Jerry Cook, vice president for international trade with Sara Lee Branded Apparel, was named chairman of its Customs and Trade Facilitation Committee.

“Jerry Cook brings industry leadership and expertise to a very important issue facing USCIB members,” stated Thomas Niles, USCIB’s president.  “It is critical that we find the right balance for security and trade facilitation.”

Formed in 1995 to address trade facilitation and customs procedures worldwide, the USCIB committee has emphasized the importance of modernization to supply-chain efficiency, collaborating with ICC and the World Customs Organization (WCO).  Modernization of customs practices has become part of the formal agenda of the World Trade Organization’s Doha round of multilateral trade negotiations as well as other regional and bilateral trade agreements.

Since 9/11, a key USCIB objective has been to build trade facilitation into the various new WCO measures aimed at increasing border security against terrorist threats.  USCIB is also engaged in the technical issues of trade facilitation such as supporting the implementation and integrity of the WTO Valuation Agreement and the WCO work on classification of high-tech products.

Mr. Cook manages trade and facilitation issues for one of the world’s leading branded consumer packaged goods companies, selling its products in nearly 200 countries.  Sara Lee’s Branded Apparel is the largest U.S. apparel company, and one of three global businesses of the Sara Lee Corporation.  He succeeds Sandy Merber of General Electric Company, who became chairman of the ICC Commission on Customs and Trade Regulations in February 2003.

Mr. Cook, who is also a licensed customs broker, has primary responsibility at Sara Lee Branded Apparel for trade, international relations, international logistics and relations with U.S. Customs and the Department of Homeland Security.

Sara Lee Branded Apparel is a Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (CTPAT) charter member with US Customs Border Patrol. Cook is also a member of the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Portal Trade Support Network, and the Operation Safe Commerce Pilot.

Mr. Cook serves as an advisor to the Department of Commerce for textile and apparel trade issues.  He also serves on the board of the American Association of Exporters and Importers and is a co-chair of the U.S.-Central America Business Coalition.

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