WINNIPEG — An industry group says a pasta war is heating up as a predatory trade practice hurts Canada’s domestic market, affecting both pasta processors and durum producers.
Millions of kilograms of subsidized Turkish pasta are allegedly being sold at a discount into the Canadian market, which unfairly competes with domestic processors and producers, according to the Canadian Pasta Manufacturers Association.
“Our concern is if it continues — this momentum — over time it’ll be a very serious problem,” said Don Jarvis, the association’s executive director.
More than five million kilograms of uncooked pasta were imported into Canada from Turkey between January and November, almost triple the total quantity imported for all of 2014, according to Statistics Canada estimates.
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“Which is a lot of pasta,” Jarvis said.
“We’ve seen this problem really dramatically increase in the last 12 months.”
Statistics Canada data also shows the dumped Turkish pasta is significantly cheaper than other imported pasta, at half the price of Italian, and 40 percent cheaper than American.
“So it’s very clear, as demonstrated elsewhere — particularly by the U.S. — that the Turkish pasta is subsidized and dumped,” Jarvis said.
The dumped product damages the local industry through lost market share and sales and potential disruption to other industries in the supply chain, including Canada’s wheat growers and millers, said the CPMA.
Durum is the main ingredient in pasta production, and Jarvis said the dumping has an effect, though muted, on Canada’s domestic durum market.
Most of Canada’s durum is exported, but the dumped pasta still competes with durum in Canada, Jarvis said.
The four companies that CPMA represents manufacture dry pasta predominantly from Canadian durum.
“Pasta dumping is competitively reducing the consumption of Canadian pasta and Canadian durum, so it does impact growers and Canadian durum utilization in the marketplace,” Jarvis said.
The CPMA has asked importers and marketers of Turkish pasta to stop bringing it into the country.
Jarvis said the association is currently conducting research and communication, but it is prepared to take formal action if it doesn’t see progress.
The CPMA is prepared to initiate a complaint with the Canadian Border Services Agency and ask for preliminary duties to be imposed on Turkish pasta and seek legal action from the Canadian International Trade Tribunal.
Americans have taken similar action with their international process rules, Jarvis said.
