General Manager says voter turnout is a real talking point
By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com
Since Donald Trump won the race to the White House over Hillary Clinton on Tuesday, many farm groups in the United States have congratulated the President-Elect while also voicing their concerns for the new government to consider.
But what about north of the border? What are some farm organizations saying about the U.S. election and its potential impact on Canadian agriculture?
For Ontario Federation of Agriculture general manager Neil Currie, while the voters ultimately decided the outcome, those that didn’t make their way to polling stations played just as important a role in Tuesday’s results.
“It’s a sad state of affairs,” he said. “Hearing the stats, you see about 47 per cent of possible voters decided not to participate. That may be more telling than anything.”
As far as Canadian agriculture is concerned, Currie said Trump’s protectionist views on trade could be an issue, despite a Farm Bill not being part of the newly elected president’s campaign.
“We finally got over a bunch of hurdles with the (Country of Origin) labeling issues and that was a big relief,” Currie said. “Hopefully Congress and the President don’t follow those footsteps again because it’s really problematic for us.”
When it comes to Trump’s desire to renegotiate NAFTA, Currie said he appreciated the Canadian government’s response that discussions are welcomed, but at the end of the day international rules should be upheld.
Farms.com has reached out to various farm organizations in Western Canada and awaits their responses.