Canada hasn’t come close to maxxing out the Chinese market for canola, says the vice-president of the Canola Council of Canada.
As a result, a free trade deal that would give canola fair treatment would see Chinese demand spike for the oilseed.
Soybean imports are now charged a five percent tariff, but canola faces a nine percent tariff.
This discrepancy makes canola more expensive than soybeans for buyers, but a trade deal could eliminate the differential.
“For canola, this would be incredibly valuable,” Brian Inness said during Manitoba Ag Days Jan. 19.
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China purchased just over 20 million tonnes of wheat, corn, barley and sorghum last year, that is well below the 60 million tonnes purchased in 2021-22.
China already takes about 45 percent of Canada’s canola exports, but that trade pales in comparison to its imports of soybeans.
China imports four million tonnes of Canadian canola but 75 to 80 million tonnes of soybeans from countries such as the United States and Brazil.
Removing the tariff differential would give the Canadian industry $300 million more per year.
“That doesn’t take into account the amount we could grow the market if we could have equal access to soybeans,” said Inness.
Canada and China have been discussing a free trade deal, which the canola industry hopes will resolve its issues.
