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Fruit and Vegetable Growers Brace for Tariffs, Urge Quick Government Action to Support Trade Exposed Sector

OTTAWA, ON,  Over three days last month, Canada's greenhouse vegetable growers got a preview of what sweeping US tariffs would do to their industry, and they saw that the impact could be devastating.

Canada's fruit and vegetable growers have long-known about the inadequacies in current safety net programs. In recent years, extreme weather events and a growing threat of emerging pests have hurt domestic production. Now, the threat of US tariffs has made these vulnerabilities even more acute. 

In Ontario alone, between March 4 and 7 when US President Trump's tariffs were implemented on a range of goods covered under the Canada-US-Mexico free trade agreement (CUSMA), greenhouse growers reported losses of $2.2 million a day in sales.

With 48 percent of total production exported to the United States, all Canadian fruit and vegetable growers are threatened by the US tariffs.

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Canada reaches tariff deal with China on canola, electric vehicles

Video: Canada reaches tariff deal with China on canola, electric vehicles

Canada has reached a deal with China to increase the limit of imports of Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) in exchange for Beijing dropping tariffs on agricultural products, such as canola, Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Friday.

The tariffs on canola are dropping to 15 per cent starting on March 1. In exchange for dropping duties on agricultural products, Carney is allowing 49,000 Chinese EVs to be exported to Canada.

Carney described it as a “preliminary but landmark” agreement to remove trade barriers and reduce tariffs, part of a broader strategic partnership with China.