Today, at the Canada-EU Summit in Ottawa, Prime Minister Stephen Harper and José Manuel Barroso, president of the European Commission, signed a formal declaration marking the end of negotiations for the Canada-Europe Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). The final text of the deal — more than 1,600 pages long — was also made public for the… Read More
Category: Trade
Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz today completed a trade mission to China and India to open new markets for Canadian farmers and agriculture industries. Of particular note, Minister Ritz met with China’s Minister of Agriculture Han Changfu to work to secure permanent access for Canadian live cattle valued by industry at $150 million annually once fully… Read More
Almost a decade after negotiations began, the Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement was signed today in Ottawa by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Korean President Park Geun-hye. The deal is expected to help Canadian agricultural exports compete against American exports, as sales of Canadian beef, pork and other commodities have declined since South Korea ratified a similar trade… Read More
While new bilateral trade agreements present many opportunities, international trade is also becoming much more complicated for agriculture companies in the export business, say the authors of a report published by the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute (read the paper here.) With bilateral deals with the European Union, Japan and South Korea in the works, keeping… Read More
A coalition of North American meat and livestock organizations is keeping its legal options open as it attempts to have U.S. country of origin labeling (COOL) rules repealed. According to the industry, COOL is costing Canadian cattle and hog producers around a billion dollars per year. On Friday, a group that includes the Canadian Cattlemen’s… Read More
Following a report that says the World Trade Organization has sided with Canada and Mexico in the dispute over U.S. country of origin labelling rules, a coalition of American food and agriculture organizations is urging Congress and U.S. Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack to immediately suspend COOL if the WTO rules against the U.S. Although the ruling… Read More
The Russian government announced a ban on food imports from Canada, the United States, the European Union, Australia and Norway this week. The declaration follows increasing sanctions imposed on Russia by these countries. “In the wake of continued aggression by Russia, which includes the ongoing supply of logistical support and weapons systems to agents of… Read More
The World Trade Organization’s (WTO) compliance panel has issued a preliminary ruling on the complaint sent forward by Canada and Mexico on the United States’ Country of Origin Labelling rules. The ruling, sent to all three countries, remains confidential. “In the past, these confidential rulings have been leaked, so they’re usually pretty poorly kept secrets, but this… Read More
Four years of micro-analysis in Uganda and Ethiopia led up to April’s publication by the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) at London University: Fairtrade, Employment and Poverty Reduction in Ethiopia and Uganda (FTEPR) Final Report. The report, a detailed account of various plantations in both countries, suggests that perhaps “Fairtrade” coffee isn’t so fair after all. “Fairtrade may… Read More
Debra Murphy took in the the first ever Grain Handling and Logistics Summit in Saskatoon today. Near the end of the day, she and RealAgriculture editor Lyndsey Smith re-capped the hot topics of the day, a day filled with tough questions and even tougher answers. From a representative from CN Rail who didn’t wait around… Read More
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan – In light of the recent completion of the Canada-South Korean Free Trade Agreement negotiations, the Honourable Gerry Ritz, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, announced today that he will lead a large delegation of agriculture groups on a trade mission to South Korea. “The agreement, Canada’s very first in Asia, is projected to create thousands of… Read More
It’s a win for agriculture commodities, namely pork and beef, but a sore spot for the auto industry, as Prime Minister Stephen Harper was in South Korea this week to finalize and sign a free trade agreement with that country. This Agreement will create jobs & opportunities for Cdns across the country: http://t.co/tUeeYj7qg5 #cdnpoli… Read More
The Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture hosted the 2014 Agriculture Trade Summit in Saskatoon in early February. It was there that I met Jennifer Higginson, deputy director of the trade negotiations division of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Higginson’s presentation dealt largely with the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), citing an eventual elimination of over 95%… Read More
The words “Made in Canada branding campaign” had hardly dried on the page of federal finance minister Jim Flaherty’s Economic Action Plan last week before marketing experts started taking shots at it…even though they didn’t know what it was about. They couldn’t know, because the government itself didn’t — all the budget contained was one… Read More
First, an apology. Eagle-eyed RealAgriculture readers will note that this column was absent last week. After three days at FarmTech ’14 there was more than enough to share, but no time to do it, so I’ll work some of last week into this, if you don’t mind. It’s no secret I like trains. Furthermore, I… Read More