Canadian Pork producers welcome the signing of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. Canada’s Minister of Trade, François-Philippe Champagne and trade representatives from the other 10 CPTPP countries signed the deal in an official ceremony March 8 in Santiago, Chile.

“Canada is a globally competitive producer and exporter of pork and pork products. We have worked hard to develop our reputation as a reliable supplier of safe, wholesome, high-quality pork. The key to building on our success, however, is the ability to access a wide variety of markets,” says Canadian Pork Council Chair Rick Bergmann.

Even without the participation of the United States, the CPTPP will span a market of nearly 500 million people, making it one of the globe’s three largest trade agreements. The deal will be setting the global trade rules for at least the next decade and Canada’s involvement is crucial to protecting the country’s agricultural interests. The expanded trade opportunities flowing from the CPTPP mean Manitoba farmers may increase their investment in new and existing farm infrastructure, which will certainly create new jobs both on and off the farm.

“This deal will provide our industry stability in vital markets like Japan and opportunities in emerging markets like Vietnam. Canadian pork producers can rest easy knowing that their livelihood and that of thousand other Canadians in rural and urban communities who work in the pork industry is supported by this newest trade deal,” Bergmann adds.

This agreement will secure preferential market access to the free trade agreement partner countries through tariff elimination and reduction with the most noticeable gain for Canadian pork being Japan. According to Global Affairs Canada’s Office of the Chief Economist, Canadian pork exports to Japan are projected to increase by $639 million or 36.2% under the CPTPP.

With eyes on improving the Japanese market, Bergmann and Lawrence MacAulay, minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, along with representatives from the Canadian pork sector, were on a trade advocacy mission in Japan recently. The goal of the mission was to build on trade relationships that have been decades in the making. It was also an opportunity for the delegation to witness firsthand how Japan markets Canadian pork.

Japan is currently Canada’s second largest market for our pork. In 2017, 252,147 tons of Canadian pork and pork products were exported to Japan, a value of $1.2 billion.

Source: Manitoba Pork and Canadian Pork Council