Two U.S. wheat industry groups are using Canada’s win on country of origin labeling to renew calls for Canada to remove restrictions on the ability of American growers to sell grain north of the border.
The U.S. Wheat Associates and the National Association of Wheat Growers issued a letter last week to federal trade minister Ed Fast and agriculture minister Gerry Ritz, demanding that U.S. growers be given equal opportunity to sell their wheat in Canada at fair market value.
“It is readily apparent to us that Canada’s treatment of imported wheat is less favourable than that of domestic wheat through (Canada’s) grading system,” said the May 20 letter.
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The U.S. wheat industry letter comes at a sensitive time for agricultural exporters on both sides of the border.
On May 18, the World Trade Organization ruled that U.S. country-of-origin labelling on meat products discriminates against the Canadian livestock and meat sectors.
The letter from the U.S. wheat groups specifically references the COOL dispute, suggesting that Canada’s “discriminatory treatment of foreign grain” is similar to America’s trade distorting meat labelling laws.
“Our concerns about the unfair regulatory environment that U.S. wheat faces in Canada closely parallel the arguments Canada successfully made in its WTO complaint against U.S. country-of-origin labelling (COOL) requirements,” the letter said.
Under the Canada Grains Act, wheat varieties registered for commercial production in Canada but grown in the United States do not qualify for an official grade and class designation in Canada.
By default, U.S. grown wheat marketed in Canada is sold as low value feed unless Canadian grain handlers negotiate a higher price.
By contrast, Canadian grain shipped south and delivered into the U.S. grain handling system is eligible for an official U.S. grade designation.
Wheat groups on both sides of the border have acknowledged the inequity, but Canadian efforts to correct it have been slow.
The letter from USW and NAWG appears to be a not-so-subtle re-minder that discriminatory provisions within the Canada Grains Act need to be addressed quickly.
The American letter also said Canada’s variety registration system places “undue burdens on registering U.S. grown varieties” by including irrelevant agronomic factors that are not specified by end-users and add no value to a transaction.
Earlier this year, the government introduced Bill C-48 to remove restrictions on the sale of U.S. wheat in Canada.
Cam Dahl, president of Cereals Canada, said his organization hopes Bill C-48 will pass this summer, but time is running short as the fall election looms.
Ritz emphasized the importance of Bill C-48 in an email and encouraged opposition parties to “put politics aside” and move it expeditiously through Parliament.
