September 14, 2023

 

Canadian beef and meat industry's campaign seeks to discourage admitting UK into CPTPP

 

 

 

Canada's beef and red meat industry is asking the public for help to prevent the United Kingdom from joining a trade deal.

 

The Canadian Cattle Association (CCA), Canadian Meat Council and National Cattle Feeders' Association (NCFA) launched a campaign on September 12 called "Say No To a Bad Deal." Their goal is to pressure the Canadian federal government not to formally admit the UK into the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

 

"Tell the Federal Government to say no to a bad trade deal and renegotiate the CPTPP with the United Kingdom," says the campaign's website. "Trade deals only make sense when they are fair to Canadians."

 

The campaign stems from an announcement in July when Canada and other Pacific nations welcomed the UK into the CPTPP. At a signing ceremony in New Zealand, Britain became the 12th member of the trade pact, joining Canada, Australia, Brunei, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.

 

Canadian International Trade Minister Mary Ng supported the addition of the United Kingdom to the CPTPP, noting in a news release that Canada and the UK are committed to "open, predictable and inclusive" trade.

 

Canada's red meat sector, however, doesn't share the opinion. Beef and pork groups slammed the decision, saying the UK has not met the standards of the free trade agreement. The central issue is that the UK does not recognise the safety of Canada's meat processing and food production systems. Hence, British authorities cannot permit imports of Canadian beef or pork.

 

"The proposed agreement will see the UK exporting over $50 million of their meat products into the Canadian market, while Canada will be unable to export any meat products into their market," a release from the CCA, the meat council and the NCFA stated.

 

The Canadian government is working on a bilateral deal with the UK, within CPTPP, to sort out issues like red meat trade.

 

Canada's parliament must pass any legislation that allows the UK to join the CPTPP. The beef and meat groups want federal politicians to reject the legislation.

 

"The CPTPP sets a high standard for progressive trade and the deal proposed with the UK would set a dangerous precedent for future countries looking to join," said Nathan Phinney, CCA's president.

 

Chris White, Canadian Meat Council's president and chief executive, said there are other consequences if science-based rules are abandoned in trade deals.

 

"Not only will this deal hurt the pockets of Canadian meat processors and farmers, it additionally puts consumers at risk by deprioritising scientific-based controls and lowering the bar for international regulations."

 

The UK's refusal to accept imports of Canadian beef and pork is connected to the UK farm lobby.

 

Agricultural groups have pressured the UK government to keep Canadian beef and pork out of Britain, claiming that meat products from Canada are produced with inferior standards.

 

Meanwhile, the groups in Canada may have some support in Ottawa.

 

In August, an Agriculture Canada spokesperson said the government expects the UK to comply with the rules of the CPTPP. This includes regulations around the import of Canadian beef and pork, which should be "science- and risk-based."

- BIV