December 26, 2005

Canada's livestock farmers to get rebates on US corn tariff

Canadian hog and cattle producers concerned about a new tariff imposed on US corn imports will be able to receive rebates on part of the duty, the Canadian Border Services Association (CBSA) announced this week.

At meetings that took place in several Canadian cities on Thursday, producers learned about a duty-relief programme and a duty-drawback programme which could help them get partial rebates on the US$1.65 tariff. The meetings were arranged by the Animal Nutrition Association of Canada, the Canadian Cattlemen's Association and the Canadian Pork Council.

The duty-relief programme gives an exemption to the tariff for producers who import corn from the US for feed and then send the animals back outside the country, according to the presentation made by CBSA spokeswoman Wendy Mitchell in Winnipeg. Exports are not restricted to the US, but exports must be made within four years of the release date of the imported corn.

The programme allows farmers to collect a partial return at various stages of the production process.

"There's a lot of paperwork involved," said Andrew Dickson, general manager of the Manitoba Pork Council, who attended the Winnipeg meeting. "I think people should deal directly with CBSA. We're going to try and set up some information sources for farmers. But people need to deal directly with them to make sure they have the right facts."