Winter
2016
grainswest.com
23
TRANS - PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP NATIONS
the same time frame. Finally, tariffs of up
to five per cent on all wheat exported to
Vietnamwill be eliminated when the TPP
comes into force.
Like wheat and barley, Canadian beef
and pork—which accounted for more
than $3.9 billion per year on average in
exports to TPP countries from 2012 to
2014—will have improved access to TPP
markets in Asia, and the benefits of such
a development could also filter down to
the grain industry.
“The tariffs are being dropped on the
meat industry, which makes Canadian
meat—hogs and beef—much more
competitive to trade into those markets
in Southeast Asia,” said Brian Otto, chair
of the Barley Council of Canada and
a farmer east of Warner, AB. “As they
increase their market share in that trading
area, it creates more demand for our
barley here at home, because we all know
that barley is a major food source for the
feeding industry in Western Canada.”
The Canadian canola industry could
also receive a boost as a result of the TPP
due to reduced canola oil tariffs. Canola
oil tariffs of up to 13.20 yen (C$0.14)/
kilogram in Japan and Vietnam’s five per
cent tariff will be phased out within five
years. Currently, Japan is a key market for
Canadian canola oil exports.
Across most Canadian agricultural
sectors, access to the Japanese market
is the big prize in the TPP. Previously,
Canada did not have a bilateral trade
agreement with Japan, while competitor
Australia did.
“Japan is the most important country
currently in the TPP because we export
so much to them,” Porozni said. “They
pay premium dollar for premium quality.”
DISASTER AVERTED
In the eyes of many in the industry,
Canada’s involvement in the TPP is
significant not only because of the
benefits it could provide for agricultural
exports, but due to the consequences
that could have befallen the country if
Canada was left on the outside looking in.
“Our major customers are in the TPP,
but some of our major competitors
are as well,” Citeau said. “So if we had
not been in the TPP we would have
fallen behind and that would have had
devastating effects across the whole
agriculture sector.”
According to Al Mussell, research
lead for Agri-Food Economic Systems,
Canada needed to be a member of
the TPP to consolidate its existing
access in TPP markets, while creating
an even playing field between Canada
and its trade rivals in the region. “The
fear, of course, was that, as other
countries negotiate bilateral-type trade
agreements, they would get better
access than we do, and that could really
harm effective penetration into those
markets,” Mussell said. “So some people
would say it’s a bit of a defensive interest
to be part of the TPP, and that’s true.”
Canada had already seen that fear
become a reality when the Japan-
Australia Economic Partnership
Agreement came into force on Jan. 15,
2015, giving Australia a leg up in the
lucrative Japanese market.
“In many ways, Australia looks a lot
like Canada—grain-exporting country,
red-meat-exporting country, and they are
absolutely dependent on trade as well,”
Mussell said. “If we hadn’t been part of
the TPP, we would simply not have as
good access to the Japanese market as
Australia.”
Graphic: World map courtesy of freevectormaps.com
CANADA
JAPAN
VIETNAM
BRUNEI
MALAYSIA
NEW ZEALAND
AUSTRALIA
SINGAPORE
USA
MEXICO
PERU
CHILE
