New trade agreement reached by Canada, U.S., and Mexico

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Canada has reached an 11th hour trilateral trade agreement with the U.S. and Mexico. The new deal is dubbed the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

Multiple media outlets say Canada’s dairy sector will see changes, with American dairy farmers getting more market access at a reported 3.6 per cent.  Additionally class 7 pricing will be revamped to reflect impacts on the export market.

According to RealAgriculture founder, Shaun Haney says, “The outcome of the class 7 change will be the most interesting piece to watch.  The dairy access is slightly higher than CPTPP levels that the U.S. walked away from about 18 months ago.”

Around 10 p.m. eastern, several cabinet ministers, including federal minister of agriculture, Lawrence MacAulay came together for an emergency meeting to discuss the new USMCA trade deal.

There’s also talk the Chapter 19 clause remains untouched.

Here is the joint statement on behalf of USTR Robert Lighthizer and Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland:

“Today, Canada and the United States reached an agreement, alongside Mexico, on a new, modernized trade agreement for the 21st Century: the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). USMCA will give our workers, farmers, ranchers, and businesses a high-standard trade agreement that will result in freer markets, fairer trade and robust economic growth in our region. It will strengthen the middle class, and create good, well-paying jobs and new opportunities for the nearly half billion people who call North America home. 

“We look forward to further deepening our close economic ties when this new agreement enters into force.

“We would like to thank Mexican Economy Secretary Ildefonso Guajardo for his close collaboration over the past 13 months.”

Dairy farmers of Canada respond

In a statement released about two hours after the deal was announced, president of the Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC), Pierre Lampron, says the DFC “failed to see how this deal can be good for the 220,000 Canadian families that depend on dairy for their livelihood.”

The statement went on to say by granting access of 3.59 per cent, along with eliminating competitive dairy classes and extraordinary measures will limit dairy producers ability to export their products and it will have a dramatic impact not only for dairy farmers but for the whole sector.

“This has happened, despite assurances that our government would not sign a bad deal for Canadians,” Lampron says in the news release.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

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