Dairy farmers will get some compensation from the federal
government to offset the impact of increased European cheese imports, according
to Eric Hoskins, Ontario’s Economic Development Minister.
The federal government needed provincial approvals before it
could agree to the final deal and Hoskins told the Globe and Mail that
compensation for the dairy, wine and pharmaceutical industries is part of the
package.
The free-trade deal with the European Union will increase
the tariff-free quota for cheeses, and Canadian cheese makers say they expect
the Europeans will focus on high-end specialty cheeses.
The deal roughly doubles the tariff-free quota to about
30,000 tonnes, which is still less than 10 per cent of the Canadian cheese
market. If the imports continue to target specialty cheeses, it could take 50
per cent of the sales of Canadian-made cheeses in that category, say some of
the cheese makers who expect to be facing stiff competition.
On the plus side for agriculture is the potential to add
$600 million to beef exports and $400 million to pork exports.
Beef farmers will have to forego growth-promoting implants
to get into the European beef market, but say the premium prices make it worth
that added expense.
Politicians from every major party have pledged solid
support for supply management, so it’s little surprise that the federal
government has agreed to offer dairy farmers some compensation.
That could be an important precedent related to ongoing
multi-nation free trade negotiations – the stalled round for World Trade
Organization negotiations and the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade negotiations.
Those negotiations might also involve increased competition
for Canada’s poultry farmers.
