Canada is hoping
for a breakthrough free trade agreement with the European Union within
two years that could open up significant export opportunities for
agriculture, says Canada’s chief negotiator.
“We are aiming very
high,” Steve Verheul, who leads the Canada-EU negotiations, told a
meeting of the Canada Grains Council and Grain Growers of Canada Nov.
25. “If our ambitions are met, it will be a bigger deal than the NAFTA
(North America Free Trade Agreement).”
He later told reporters
geography dictates that the United States will remain Canada’s biggest
market but better access to the EU with 500 million people will be a
huge opportunity for Canadian agricultural exporters.
He said
Canada wants a “big, ambitious deal,” which means that it has agreed to
talk about giving European dairy companies access to the Canadian
market, despite supply management import restrictions.
Canadian trade minister Stockwell Day already has promised that supply management protections will not be bargained away.
