OTTAWA – Agriculture minister Ralph Goodale was giving away little last week as he cautiously assessed the implications of the interim report on Canada-U.S. grain trade rules.
He clearly did not see it as a blueprint for changing the Canadian grain marketing system.
Nor was it a persuasive call for reforming the Canadian Wheat Board, despite a proposal that the board undergo radical change in return for a promise of lower American export subsidies.
Goodale said it is up to the Americans to reform their own system first.
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“In terms of addressing trade-distorting issues, Canada is well ahead of the United States, the Europeans or virtually anyone else,” he said. “Accordingly, all those other players have quite a ways to go to catch up before you would contemplate other demands upon Canada.”
Test the waters
Goodale said he would arrange a meeting with American agriculture secretary Dan Glickman this summer to talk about the report and trade issues, “to take the temperature of how things are going and whether there is the basis for a solution here that could be worked on.”
For the moment, the Canadian minister does not appear willing to concede the point.
There are recommendations in the report he said are positive, such as a proposal to have an “early warning system” to identify emerging trade irritants.
However, if that implies a permanent “trade management” system that denies Canadian grain full access to available markets, Canada might be less interested.
There are recommendations in the report that Goodale said he does not understand, including the proposal to change the board into something resembling a private grain trader. “Some of these ideas will have to be fleshed out.”
One thing Goodale said for sure: Canada will not be interested in making any changes unless there is a way to guarantee that the Americans are meeting their end of the bargain.
A number of farm group representatives, including Canadian Federation of Agriculture president Jack Wilkinson, said Canada must be careful not to accept American promises of change or subsidy reduction at face value.
Goodale said he agrees.
Despite recommendations to allow grain from either country to use facilities in the other and to have grain inspectors interchangeable across the border, he said there will be no consideration given to “harmonizing” the two systems.
