For Canadian grain farmers, the timing couldn’t be better. Organized by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), a late July trade mission to the Indo-Pacific region aimed to bolster ties with Indonesia, the Philippines and Singapore—three key buyers of Canadian cereals in the region. Cereals Canada CEO Dean Dias joined AAFC Minister Heath MacDonald and representatives of six additional major agricultural organizations to strengthen relationships in a region that annually imports more than a quarter of Canada’s total agricultural exports.

The non-stop tariff talk has been dizzying to say the least. For those keeping score at home, U.S. President Donald Trump has publicly announced levies on Canada, but also on practically every major economy on earth.

Cereals Canada welcomes the signing of the Canada-Indonesia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). Set to take effect in 2026, an exact date has not been set. This groundbreaking agreement promises to usher in a new era of growth and innovation for the Canadian cereals industry and solidify Canada’s position in the Indonesian market.

The push to pass Bill C-282 is a troubling development for Canada’s position as a global trade leader. With this legislation, Canada’s supply managed sectors, namely chicken, dairy, eggs, hatching eggs and turkey, would be exempt from trade negotiations. For Grain Growers of Canada (GGC) and the 70,000 grain farmers it represents, it undermines the critical role of international trade in sustaining Canada’s agriculture sector and the broader economy. Grain farmers export well more than half of what they produce. Our products—cereals, oilseeds and pulses—feed families around the world and generate billions for Canada’s economy. Simultaneously, most Canadian grain farmers rely on trade to sell their crops, with greater than 70 per cent of what they produce being exported. For farmers, loss of market access brings with it shrinking margins, unsold crops and growing uncertainty about the future.

Last year, seeing the increasing need for collaborative leadership across the agriculture industry, Chamber members created its Food Supply Council. This cross-sector coalition of agribusinesses, associations and transportation companies strives to provide leadership that will advance Canadian agriculture and solve key industry challenges.

2020 relentlessly injected volatility, often negative, into everyday experience. COVID-19 is the obvious culprit. In addition, a decline in national and international co-operation has exacerbated the entire situation.

The pandemic has made 2020 an interesting year to say the least. The next challenge is to sell the crop in an effective and profitable manner.

Export markets prefer CPSR because it is affordable, high-quality wheat with good protein strength and extensibility. Farmers like it because it yields well and is especially reliable in making grade.

Increasing wheat yields in
the Black Sea region of Russia and Ukraine may send chills down the spines of Canadian farmers, but those in the know say changes in global production spell opportunity, not catastrophe, for Canadian wheat farmers.

Global Food Safety Initiative’s (GFSI) move to recognize the “rigour” of Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) programs will increase market access for Canadian grain companies in years to come, according to those in the industry.