CFA welcomes potential free trade agreement with Peru and Colombia

May 22, 2009 – The Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) welcomed today’s announcement by the Government of Canada’s which outlined their plan to quickly pass and implement free trade agreements with both Peru and Colombia.
“Both of these countries are vital markets for Canadian livestock, grain, and pulse producers,” said Laurent Pellerin, CFA President. “Farmers, especially in the wheat and barley markets, would like to see this deal quickly ratified.”

The Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) sales of wheat and barley to Colombia and Peru are worth approximately $230 million per year. Historically, Canadian wheat and barley exports to Colombia and Peru faced a tariff of 15 per cent.

“We’ve heard from our members, specifically the CWB, that Canadian market share in these countries is facing increasing competition from American and Argentine exporters, as both Argentina and the United States have tariff-free access to Colombia and Peru,” said Pellerin.

While the Peru agreement appears to achieve minimal results for both pork and beef, CFA and its members are pleased to see clear conditions for these commodities versus no agreement at all. In the future, CFA will continue to monitor the Peru agreement very closely in order to ensure that some Canadian commodities do not become disadvantaged to declining tariffs for the USA.

Pulse Canada reports that Canadian exports of pulse and specialty crops to Colombia are worth $80 million. However, without a Canada-Colombia FTA, Canadian pulse and specialty crops producers will face a 15 per cent tariff disadvantage. Canadian exports of pulse and specialty crops to Peru are worth $19 million.

“Without this agreement with Peru, Canadian producers of peas and lentils could face a tariff disadvantage of up to 25 per cent,” said Pellerin. “Our Canadian bean producers could see a tariff disadvantage of 60 per cent.”

CFA was also pleased to learn that meetings between Canada and Colombia resulted in a possible reopening of the Colombian market to Canadian beef and livestock, and if successful would make it the first South American market to open to Canadian beef and livestock since 2003. CFA commends the government for embarking on these vital trade missions with industry to help strengthen Canada’s export markets.