Canada gives in to EU concerns, revises plan for European cheese imports

August 1, 2017

European trade deal takes hold Sept. 21 with 18,000 tonnes of new cheese imports phased in over 5 years

Trade Minister François-Philippe Champagne has disappointed Canada's dairy industry with a reworked plan for how nearly 18,000 tonnes of European cheeses will be imported once Canada-EU trade deal takes effect in September.

A much-anticipated announcement came Tuesday on how Canada will allocate tariff rate quota (TRQ) for 16,000 tonnes of fine cheese and 1,700 tonnes of industrial cheese.

Those who hold the rights to import this tariff-free European cheese stand to reap the profits. But Canada's plan to give 60 per cent of the quota to its domestic dairy industry, to compensate for the market share they were about to lose, didn't go over well in Europe. ...

Importers can apply now for fall 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker announced at last month's G20 meeting in Hamburg, Germany that roughly 98 per cent of CETA would be provisionally applied Sept. 21, including this new market access for cheese. ...

This was excerpted from the 1 August 2017 edition of CBC News.


Topic(s): 
Rules of Origin & Trade Agreements / Trade Agreements
Information Source: 
Canadian News Channel
Document Type: 
Email Article