New NAFTA: Don't sign it Justin!

Today the National Farmers Union (NFU) sent a letter to Prime Minister Trudeau and Foreign Affairs Minister Freeland urging them not to sign the new NAFTA agreement in its present form.

See why on the NFU website

“It has recently come to light that the published text – which is available only on the US Trade Representatives website and in English — contains clauses regarding dairy tariff-setting authority that differ from what Canadian negotiators agreed upon,” noted Katie Ward, NFU President. “The fact that the negotiated final text either does not exist or has not been made public is reason enough to cancel the planned signing ceremony.”

“The new NAFTA, or United States-Mexico-Canada-Agreement (USMCA) would severely damage our supply management system, which is the envy of struggling dairy farmers in the United States and around the world,” noted Cam Goff, NFU 1st Vice President (Policy). “The agreement would also compromise the quality control system that is the foundation of the Canada’s international reputation for premium quality grain exports, and it would allow undue corporate influence over our seed registration system. With the USMCA’s ongoing renegotiation process starting in year six, we may well see an acceleration of the destruction of our supply management, grain grading and seed registration system.”

The USMCA grain section requires Canada to give imported US wheat the same grade as our own, and would prevent Canada from identifying country of origin for US wheat on our grade certificates. To implement these measures, we would have to amend the Canada Grain Act, but The Canada Grain Act requirements are the foundation of Canada’s reputation for quality assured grain.

Here are email addresses for PM Trudeau justin.trudeau@parl.gc.ca and Chrystia Freeland, Foreign Trade Minister Chrystia.Freeland@parl.gc.ca
Please take a minute and send them your concern.

Healthy eating (while we still can control what we eat)
Ian