Ottawa, ON – February 22, 2023 –The Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance today announced that Adam Taylor will be the new interim Executive Director of CAFTA effective February 20.

 

“On behalf of CAFTA’s Board of Directors, I am pleased to welcome Adam to our team,” stated CAFTA president Dan Darling. “We are confident Adam’s experience and skills will help ensure a seamless transition as we continue to advance CAFTA’s key priorities.”

 

Mr. Taylor brings a wealth of experience in trade policy, communications, advocacy and public affairs to this role. He was a senior advisor in the federal government for many years and was involved in negotiations towards the Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), Canada’s official entry into the original Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations and helping to retore and create new market access for Canadian agri-food products around the world. Over the past five years, he has been a strategic advisor to CAFTA and is well suited to continue to showcase CAFTA as Canada’s leading organization advocating for freer and rules-based trade.

 

“I am grateful and excited to build upon CAFTA's many successes to date and continue to work to ensure agri-food is at forefront of Canada's trade and growth agenda,” stated Taylor. “I look forward to working alongside my CAFTA and federal government colleagues alike, as we advance our numerous shared priorities including implementing Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, ongoing trade negotiations with several partners and ensuring rules-based trade continues to underpin the global trading system.”

 

CAFTA president Dan Darling concluded by thanking outgoing Executive Director Claire Citeau for her many years in service of advancing the interests of Canada’s agri-food exporters. “Claire’s leadership over the past 8 years has been exceptional and incredibly beneficial to the agriculture and agri-food sector. We wish her all the best in her future endeavours.”

 

The Board also announced that CAFTA will soon launch a competitive process to find a permanent executive director.

​

CAFTA is the voice of Canadian agriculture and agri-food exporters, representing the 90% of farmers who depend on trade and the ranchers, producers, processors and agri-food exporters who want to grow the economy through better access to international markets. This includes the beef, pork, meat, grains, cereals, pulses, soybeans, canola as well as the sugar, malt, and processed food industries. The sectors CAFTA represents 90 per cent of Canada’s agri-food exports and support over a million jobs in urban and rural communities across Canada.

 

For further information, please contact:

info@cafta.org