(Twitter/@Cereals_Canada)

By Alice McFarlane

Canadian canola

Farm group says trade issues go beyond canola

Sep 6, 2019 | 4:38 PM

Canada has requested a meeting with China at the World Trade Organization (WTO) to resolve a Chinese ban on Canadian canola shipments.

International Trade Minister Jim Carr said Canada is seeking a bilateral consultation at the WTO because the two sides have been unable to find a resolution.

One farm group said similar action is needed on mandatory Country of Origin Labelling (mCOOL) in Italy to protect Canadian durum.

Cereals Canada said while it supports a formal WTO dispute resolution case against China for their restrictions on canola, trade issues go beyond China and encompass more crops than canola.

President Cam Dahl said Italy was once the largest market for Canadian durum, the wheat used to make pasta.

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“Since mCOOL has been brought in, Canadian farmers have lost 60 per cent of this market,” Dahl said. “We urge the Government of Canada to stand up against and use all available tools to challenge the Italian regulations that effectively discriminate against Canadian products.”

Dahl said the loss of the Italian durum market happened after the agricultural provisions of the Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement with Europe came into effect.

Cereals Canada also called for a much more public and assertive response from the federal government to the harm being done to Canadian farmers and exporters by the Italian regulations.

“We need to do more than sign trade agreements. We need to place a priority on making sure trade agreements actually work. Failure to challenge the Italian regulations will encourage other countries with trade protectionist goals to utilize similar means to block Canadian exports. The time to challenge these non-tariff barriers is now, before further proliferation of this protectionist tool,” Dahl said.

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alice.mcfarlane@jpbg.ca

OnTwitter: @AliceMcF