The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association (CCA) welcomes news that the European Union has ratified the Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA), one day after the House of Commons passed the CETA legislation. With potential for CETA to now come into effect by summer, the CCA is committed to continue working with the Government of Canada to enable meaningful Canadian beef access to the EU.
A long-time champion of the CETA, the Canadian beef cattle sector is pleased with the prospective elimination of EU import tariffs on nearly 65,000 tonnes of Canadian beef. With this new access, the EU has the potential to become a $600 million annual market for Canadian beef, up from current levels of approximately $6 to $10 million per year.
The CCA has been clear that although the potential of CETA for Canadian beef producers is immense, for that potential to be realized, longstanding technical barriers must be resolved. Progress is dependent upon the EU recognizing the effectiveness of citric acid and peroxyacetic acid in beef processing.
The CCA is working with the Canadian Meat Council and Government of Canada officials to prepare the submissions that we are confident will enable the European Food Safety Authority to recommend approval of the use of these interventions in beef production.
In addition to the Government of Canada working with us to execute a strategy to achieve the approval of these products by the European Commission, the CCA expects that any EU beef or veal imported into Canada will be verified to be in full compliance with Canadian food safety requirements.
Finally, the CCA will be working with the Government of Canada to identify investments into both beef processing and beef producer operations to help them comply with the complexities of the EU market.
The CCA anticipates it will likely take a few years to achieve the resolution of the technical issues, but by working together and with the commitment of resources and transitional assistance from government, we are confident that we can get the job done.
Source: Cattle