Geneva, Switzerland – June 16, 2022– Greg Northey, Vice President of the Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance and head of CAFTA’s delegation to MC12 in Geneva, today issued the following statement regarding outcomes at the first WTO Ministerial Meeting in over five years.

 

“Overall, amid rising global tensions and ever-increasing food security challenges, Canada’s agrifood exporters were expecting meaningful outcomes on agriculture at MC12.

 

“We thank Minister Ng, Ambassador De Boer and Canadian officials for their constructive work and diligent attempts to secure ambitious results over the past several days. The effort to find solutions to many of the challenges the world is facing were appreciated by Canadian agri-food exporters that depend on free and rules-based trade.

 

“Noteworthy achievements by Trade Ministers include a Declaration on Trade and Food Security, a Declaration on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures and commitments to reform and strengthen the rules-based trading system including its dispute settlement mechanism. We hope members seize the momentum from MC12 to further advance discussions on tackling tradedistorting subsidies.

 

“While we need to review the details closely, it is encouraging that WTO members want to see the international community working together on issues related to global food security, advancing trade liberalization in agriculture, holding the line on rules-based trade and ensuring science is at the heart of rulemaking. The work ahead will be critical in ensuring that we now put words into action.

 

“Better and more trade will enable farmers and food manufacturers to respond to current and future geopolitical and agriculture challenges. We must ensure that the rules and principles upon which the trading system is based upon prevail.

 

“Reinvigorating efforts to reform global trade in agriculture will strengthen the resilience of global supply chains, help alleviate the price pain consumers are feeling and provide farmers, food manufacturers and workers around the world with predictability and certainty.

 

“Simply put, the world wants more Canadian food. We have the ambition to become an even bigger global food supplier. The world has an expectation that Canada will provide the agrifood commodities and products needed. “

 

As we continue to face profound geopolitical uncertainty, Canada’s agri-food resilience and competitiveness depend on predictable and stable access to global markets underpinned by a robust WTO.

 

“Canadian leadership in advancing rules-based trade at the WTO is needed now more than ever so that agri-food exporters can help overcome current challenges and seize the extraordinary opportunities that are to come.”

 

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 support over a million jobs in urban and rural communities across Canada.

 

For further information, please contact:

info@cafta.org