Canadian pork producers welcome USMCA

 

Staff Writer

Farms.com

 

Members of Canada’s pork sector are optimistic about the recent signing of the United States-Mexico-Canada-Agreement (USMCA).

 

The signing, which took place on Nov. 30 in Buenos Aires, shows progress in the pork industry, Rick Bergmann, chair of the Canadian Pork Council (CPC) and a pork producer from Manitoba, said in a Friday organizational release. 

 

“We are taking the signature of this updated agreement as a positive sign that we are moving towards completion of this accord and an increased stability in the global marketplace … CPC is looking forward to renewed efforts being put into projects that had been delayed because of ongoing trade negotiations.”

 

Industry and government leaders devoted a lot of effort to developing the USMCA agreement, Gary Stordy, CPC’s director of government and corporate affairs, told Farms.com yesterday.

 

“It has been an interesting couple of years as (the original) NAFTA was modernized, which led us to the USMCA. Rightfully so, it required a significant amount of attention, both as part of the industry, but also government. It was an important negotiation, and we wanted to have a positive outcome overall.

 

“Now it’s time to continue on. So, the major hurdles and obstacles are … ideally in the rearview mirror, and it’s an opportunity to go full steam ahead.” 

 

Manitoba Pork is also optimistic of the USMCA signing, said a Monday Farmscape article. 

 

“I think the key to remember … is that the United States is a huge market for us, Mexico is big market for us as well, and Mexico is a big market for the United States for pork,” said Andrew Dickson, the general manager of Manitoba Pork, in the article. “By having this free flow of goods, it also brings certainty into the whole business because these are stable markets, so businesses can continue to develop and grow.”

 

Manitoba Pork is content with the agreements that the federal government has accomplished over the past four or five years, Dickson said in the article. 

 

The three governments must provide final approval on the USMCA agreement before it becomes active.