UPDATED – 1110 CST, March 25, 2019 – Canadian government and industry, agriculture and trade officials, say there is officially no abnormal restriction on agricultural product exports to China, with the exception of canola seed.
The Canadian Agriculture and Food Trade Association and the federal Minister of Agriculture confirm that the restrictions are only on the seed itself. CAFTA officials interviewed the morning of March 25 by the Western Producer told it that the Chinese export situation has not changed, despite media reports that suggest it is officially or unofficially expanding to other Canadian agricultural exports.
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Minister Bibeau told CBC news on March 25 that AAFC and the other federal departments are pursuing the issue as a phytosanitary problem claimed by China about Canadian canola seed and that no other products are currently affected.
Original story, posted March 22, 2019:
China plans to restrict or stop imports of Canadian agricultural commodities beyond canola, according to a report from The Globe and Mail.
The story states, “purchase plans for wheat, peas, flax seed and rapeseed meal have all been canceled,” said Gao Huazhi, chief executive of Jiangsu Tongliang International, which imports Canadian agricultural products.
Yesterday, the Canola Council of Canada president Jim Everson said China expanded its restriction on buying canola from Richardson International to all Canadian exporters.
China has halted all new acquisitions of Canadian canola, the industry says, an escalation of what executives and analysts call retaliation against the arrest of a Huawei leader, Meng Wanzhou.
