Many prairie farmers probably think of the European Union as one of Canada’s worst trading partners.
The perception is that the bloc throws up unjustifiable barriers against crops and meat for domestic political purposes.
However, Canada’s chief agricultural trade negotiator told the Canada Grains Council annual meeting that the EU is actually one of the most open markets that Canada sells into, and exporting there should get easier if free trade negotiations are successful.
Frederic Seppey said not only do Europeans tend to follow the rules that they agree to, but it’s likely the Canada-EU agreement will be approved. Europe wants to establish trade deals with a number of developed countries, so succeeding with Canada is important for them as well, Seppey said.
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“This is the first time, with Canada, that they are truly negotiating with a developed country,” he said.
“If they walk away, say ‘we drop it,’ then they would have to start from scratch (with other negotiations, including upcoming ones with the United States). It calls upon the ability of the European Union to conclude an agreement with a developed country. “
Prairie farmers have been hurt by European restrictions on pork, beef, flax and canola, with EU regulators often saying Canadian products contravene various EU rules on genetic modification or health safety standards.
Those disputes are vexing but can sometimes be worked through, Seppey said. An agreement with the EU on free trade would provide a more dependable platform for a growing import-export relationship.
Other markets are less dependable, even if their tariffs, phytosanitary controls and other complications aren’t always more extreme.
For instance, India’s import tariffs aren’t usually extremely high, but the government doesn’t always enforce its import costs and controls. It uses a “flexible” system that applies or removes costs for “policy objectives,” making market accessibility hard to anticipate.
“It is one of the most, let’s say, sophisticated regulatory regimes in the world,” said Seppey.
Other markets have preferential access to Canada’s competitors.
Morocco has a free trade deal with the United States, which makes it easy for the U.S. to undercut Canada for durum sales.
South Korea also has a bilateral trade deal with the U.S., which is why most of Canada’s pork market there has been lost.
Japan has many trade barriers to imports, but with that market Canada is ahead of key competitors, such as the U.S. and Australia.
