Farmscape for November 1, 2016

The Canadian Meat industry is applauding the signing of the CETA agreement but is calling for resolution of technical issues that would continue to block the export of Canadian meat products into the European market.
On Sunday Canada's Prime Minister and top officials of the European Union signed the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement.
The deal will provide duty-free access to Europe for approximately 81,000 tonnes of Canadian pork, 65,000 tonnes of Canadian beef and veal, 3,000 tonnes of Canadian bison meat and unlimited duty-free access for Canadian horsemeat and Canadian prepared meats.
Ron Davidson, the Director for International Trade, Government and Media Relations with the Canadian Meat Council, says access to those quotas will depend on resolution of outstanding technical barriers.

Clip-Ron Davidson-Canadian Meat Council:
Their meat inspection systems differ between different countries and that includes between Canada and the European Union.
There have been negotiations going on for many years towards equivalency.
In 2014 the Canada and European governments exchanged letters saying that we were working towards equivalency.
Unfortunately, when the end of the negotiations came, it turned out there are some items in which it seems the Europeans are not recognizing the Canadian system as providing equivalent levels of food safety.
The meat industry is very supportive of CETA, provided that we are able to use the quotas which the negotiators envisaged being available.
It's a regulatory process and we need some regulatory decisions which are going to make those quotas commercially viable.
We were told they would be commercially viable but at the moment they're not.

Davidson says the Canadian Meat Council encourages the Canadian and EU governments to move forward quickly and simultaneously on both ratification of the agreement and resolution of the outstanding technical barriers.
For Farmscape.Ca, I'm Bruce Cochrane.

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