The levies, announced by the commerce ministry and scheduled to take effect on March 20, match the 100 per cent and 25 per cent import duties Canada slapped on China-made electric vehicles and steel and aluminum products just over four months ago.

By excluding canola, which was one of Canada’s top exports to the world’s No.1 agricultural importer prior to China investigating it for anti-dumping last year, Beijing may be keeping the door open for trade talks.

Tariffs a warning shot

But the tariffs also serve as a warning shot, analysts say, with the Trump administration having signaled it could ease 25 per cent import levies the White House is threatening Canada and Mexico with if they apply the same extra 20 per cent duty he has slapped on Chinese goods over fentanyl flows.

“Canada’s measures seriously violate World Trade Organization rules, constitute a typical act of protectionism and are discriminatory measures that severely harm China’s legitimate rights and interests,” the commerce ministry said in a statement.

China will apply a 100 per cent tariff to just over C$1.44 billion of Canadian rapeseed oil, oil cakes and pea imports, and a 25 per cent duty on C$2.31 billion worth of Canadian aquatic products and pork.

“The timing may serve as a warning shot,” said Dan Wang, China director at Eurasia Group in Singapore. “By striking now, China reminds Canada of the cost of aligning too closely with American trade policy.”

“China’s delayed response (to Ottawa’s October tariffs) likely reflects both capacity constraints and strategic signaling,” she added. “The commerce ministry is stretched thin, juggling trade disputes with the U.S. and European Union.”

“Canada, a lower priority, had to wait its turn.”

The Canadian embassy in Beijing did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Canola investigation ongoing

Then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in August that Ottawa was imposing the levies to counter what he called China’s intentional state-directed policy of over-capacity, following the lead of the United States and European Union, both of which have also applied import levies to Chinese-made EVs.

In response, China in September launched an anti-dumping investigation into Canadian canola imports. More than half of Canada’s canola exports go to China and the trade was worth $3.7 billion in 2023, according to the Canola Council of Canada.

“The investigation on Canadian canola is still ongoing. That canola was not included in the list of tariffs this time might also be a gesture to leave room for negotiations,” said Rosa Wang, an analyst with agricultural consultancy JCI.

Beijing could also be hoping that a change in government in Ottawa makes it more amenable. Canada’s next national election must be held by October 20.

China is Canada’s second-largest trading partner, trailing far behind the United States. Canada exported C$67.76 billion worth of goods to the world’s second-largest economy in 2024, according to Chinese customs data.

Important pork market

China is Canada’s third-most important pork export market. It takes products for which Canada does not have easy alternate markets, said Cam Dahl, General Manager of the Manitoba Pork Council.

“The things we export to China, heads for example, are parts of the animal that don’t have easy other markets,” he said. “We can’t take that container that’s going to China and just ship it to Mexico.”

China is Canada’s number-two market for canola, said Chris Davison, president and CEO of the Canola Council of Canada.

“The (tariff) levels that are being talked about here are prohibitive levels, for sure. … The impacts will be felt across the industry,” he said, adding that he would like to see financial support from the government.

Canadian government spokespersons did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

“To be honest I don’t understand why they are doing this one at all,” said Even Pay, agriculture analyst at Trivium China.

“I expect Beijing will use the election and change of leader as an opportunity to reset relations as they did with Australia,” she added.

China in 2020 introduced a series of tariffs, bans and other restrictions on key Australian exports, including barley, wine, beef, coal, lobster and timber in retaliation to Canberra calling for a COVID origins probe.

Beijing did not begin lifting the bans until 2023, one year after Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese ousted Scott Morrison, who had called for the inquiry.

—Additional reporting by Ella Cao, Anna Mehler Paperny and Ed White

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The Feb. 19 report looks at the impact on individual provinces of 25 per cent U.S. tariffs on all non-energy imports.

The report also assumes Canada will impose retaliatory tariffs.

The report suggests Alberta will be most affected, only slightly ahead of Newfoundland and Labrador and Saskatchewan. New Brunswick and Nova Scotia are ranked as the least impacted.

Agriculture was cited as an industry at risk in both Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

Alberta is projected to see a 1.4 per cent fall in GDP, since 90 per cent of Albertan exports go to the U.S. While oil would be one of the hardest-hit sectors in Alberta, the oil support industry is expected to feel the most strain in Newfoundland and Labrador. That sector is expected to see a 1.4 per cent decline.

Saskatchewan would also see 1.4 per cent drop in GDP due to the importance of agricultural exports. According to the report, long-term impacts will depend on how easily U.S. suppliers can replace Saskatchewan’s resources.

British Columbia, ranked fourth-lowest among the provinces for impact, would see modest losses due to only 51 per cent of goods being exported to the U.S. (among the lowest of any province). The projected GDP decrease was 1.2 per cent below baseline.

Manitoba would also be one of the less-impacted provinces, though the transportation manufacturing and agriculture industries are still expected to be some of the hardest-hit.

In Ontario, 80 per cent of manufacturing exports, including a significant amount from the auto industry go to the U.S. It will likely be the province’s hardest-hit sector. The Conference board predicts “a relatively small part of Ontario’s economy would be impacted, but the impacts in the affected sectors would be large.”

New Brunswick and Nova Scotia will see the lowest impacts with projected GDP decline limited to only 0.8 and 0.7 per cent respectively. Prince Edward Island would be hit harder at 1.3 per cent.

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U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday signed an order to place 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports and 10 per cent on goods from China.

Energy products from Canada will have only a 10 per cent duty, but Mexican energy imports will be charged the full 25 per cent, the officials told reporters.

Trump has declared the national emergency under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to back the tariffs, which allows sweeping powers to address crises.

The White House officials said there would be no exclusions from the tariffs. Moreover, in the case of Canada specifically, they said the “de minimis” U.S. tariff exemption for small shipments under $800 would be canceled.

Trump originally said he would sign an executive order imposing the tariffs on his first day in office, linking the move to border issues and demanding Canada and Mexico clamp down on the flow of illegal drugs and migrants to the U.S. The order was then pushed back to Feb. 1.

Bracing for impact

A 25 per cent tariff is expected to have serious consequences for Canadian-grown agricultural commodities like grain, pork and beef.

Manitoba alone sends about three million piglets each year to producers in Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakota and Nebraska, where feed corn can be sourced more cheaply, according to the Canadian Pork Council and Manitoba Pork Council.

Midwestern farmers then raise and fatten the animals before sending them to slaughter. Pork flows to buyers in the U.S. and Canada after processing.

Manitoba piglet producers have been having uncomfortable conversations with U.S. buyers about who picks up the tariff bill.

“These pigs can’t stop flowing,” Manitoba Pork Council Chair Rick Prejet told Reuters this week, adding that there are not enough Canadian farms to fatten piglets to slaughter weight.

Prejet said American farmers need Canadian piglets because there are not enough born in the U.S. That means the piglet trade will likely continue in the short term even if tariffs are imposed.

“There will have to be a negotiation between buyer and seller,” said Prejet.

In an interview late last year, Manitoba Pork Council general manager Cam Dahl said Trump’s statements are the latest manifestation of a gradual non-partisan slide into U.S. protectionism.

“For example, we have a country of origin labelling that’s come back and is going to discriminate against Canadian live cattle and live hogs. We have things like individual state initiatives on animal welfare like Proposition 12 in California,” he said.

The original country of origin labelling rule, rolled back in 2015, was mandatory, while the new U.S. version is characterized as voluntary, although Canadian producers say that distinction will make little practical difference.

Proposition 12 sets out animal treatment standards for products sold in California. Critics are worried about the impact of state-specific rules on the harmonized value chain.

Dahl noted the sheer number of animals sent from Manitoba to the U.S. every year.

“On an annual basis, the pork industry contributes about $2.3 billion to Manitoba’s GDP. We employ about 22,000 people, and when you take away the largest market that those 22,000 people are working to fill, of course it would have a big, big impact in Manitoba,” said Dahl.

“And that’s not just for hog producers. That’s across the entire province.”

On the beef side, the Canadian beef industry expects $2 billion in live cattle exports and at least $4 billion in beef exports to the U.S. over 2024, said Laycraft. Canada is also a large import market for U.S. beef and cattle, he noted. Around $500 million in live cattle and about $1.5 billion in beef imports from the U.S. will come into Canada this year.

Canada Agriculture and Agri-Food Minister Lawrence MacAulay has expressed confidence in Canada’s ability to navigate the trade landscape under the new U.S. administration.

Canada’s minister of agriculture maintains that the cross-border trade relationship can weather the tariff storm.

“We’ve dealt with the Trump government previously and we’ll do it again,” Lawrence MacAulay told reporters Nov. 26. “We will deal with each issue as they come forward.”

MacAulay said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke with Trump shortly after the new tariff comments were made. The ag minister also pointed to a re-established cabinet committee on Canada-U.S. relations, which he said will focus on such issues.

Laycraft, likewise, believed there was a reasonable chance the highly integrated nature of U.S.-Canada trade would drive support for maintaining the status quo on both sides of the border.

“I think when people look at the benefits on the total increase in trade and being able to have these solid trade agreements with your most trusted trading partners, there’s a lot more pros than cons in any review or renegotiation moving forward,” he said.

The CCA and stakeholders planned to analyze different scenarios and outcomes and share that information with producers.

“In situations like this, the best you can do is try and give people the best possible information to make decisions moving forward,” Laycraft said

Potash mining company BHP suggested that diversification will be its answer to the U.S. tariffs.

“We have a strategy to be geographically diversified with our sales, so we will not just sell to the U.S. We will sell all over the globe,” said Karina Gistelinck, asset president of potash for BHP in Saskatchewan, late last year.

“Obviously, the U.S. is a big end-user consumer for potash, and we will take that into account.”

Gistelinck added that “tariffs come and go” and the Australian-owned BHP prioritizes resilience to tariffs and other price changes.

Dahl said he hoped the tariff threat will drive better recognition of the U.S.-Canada ag trade relationship among stakeholders like the federal government.

“Our provincial government is very engaged,” he said. “We need to have that on the federal side of agriculture and food, as well as the other provinces, to really reach out and have these conversations with individual states as well as with representatives and senators and the new administration coming in.”

—With files from Karen Briere, Janelle Rudolph, Geralyn Wichers and Reuters

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“This landmark agreement represents a significant opportunity for Canada’s meat industry to expand its presence in one of the largest and fastest-growing markets in the Indo-Pacific region,” the council said in a statement on Monday.

Indonesia and Canada signed the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) on Dec. 2, three years after negotiations began. The agreement will take effect in 2026 and was signed in Jakarta by trade ministers of both countries.

In a joint statement on Monday, the two countries said the agreement, “addresses rules and market access for goods, services, investment, financial services, and temporary movement of natural persons and includes provisions on intellectual property rights, good regulatory practices, e-commerce, competition, government procurement, small and medium-sized enterprises, women’s economic empowerment, environment, and labour.”

The countries also agreed to cooperate on critical minerals, sanitary and phytosanitary measures. Canada committed to providing technical assistance to facilitate the new agreement.

The Canadian Meat Council praised the “robust” sanitary and phytosanitary chapter, which it said will be enforced in such a way as to prevent it from becoming a non-tariff trade barrier.

“It will be essential to ensure that market access requirements, including halal certifications, and industry food safety audits are addressed promptly to facilitate commercially viable access,” the council said.

Cereals Canada was also bullish about the new deal, calling it a “significant milestone for Canada’s agriculture and food sector,” in a statement today.

“With our long history of supplying wheat and durum to Indonesian millers, Cereals Canada was supportive of the negotiations toward an agreement,” said Cereals Canada CEO Dean Dias. “We expect this new agreement to set the stage for future growth and cooperation. The Canadian cereals sector looks forward to continuing our strong ties with Indonesia.”

Cereals Canada highlighted the agreement’s “comprehensive provision on agricultural biotechnology,” and broad tariff elimination for Canadian agricultural exports.

Two-way trade between Indonesia and Canada was $3.4 billion last year, according to with Indonesia’s trade ministry. Canada has estimated bilateral trade at $5.1 billion in 2023.

Canada’s main exports to Indonesia were cereals, oilseeds, wood pulp, fertilizers and machinery, the Government of Canada’s website said. Indonesia mainly exported machinery and electrical machinery as well as garments and footwear.

Indonesia is Canada’s second-largest buyer of non-durum wheat, Cereals Canada said, with 2.4 million tonnes bought in 2023.

Under CEPA, Indonesia will see liberalization of 90.5 per cent of the total tariffs for goods entering Canada with a trade value of $1.4 billion (C$1.97 billion).

Canada’s international trade minister, Mary Ng said the country’s cattle industry was also represented on the Jakarta visit and looking to play a part in Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s signature program to provide free school meals from next year.

Asked about U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to impose 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods, Ng told Reuters: “We need to work with the Americans and we’re committed to doing that and that work will certainly continue”.

“The good news here is that Canada and Indonesia in the negotiating of this trade agreement means that we are creating a predictability of our trading relationship, bringing down tariffs,” she added.

—With files from Reuters

—Updated Dec. 4 to include quotes, details from Cereals Canada, updates headline.

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Port Fourchon, Louisiana, home to marine and equipment suppliers to offshore oil producers, was closed to vessel traffic as was the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP), the only U.S. deepwater port that can handle very large crude carriers (VLCCs) for oil imports and exports.

New Orleans, Plaquemines, Cameron, Lake Charles and Houmaports remained closed on Wednesday, the U.S. Coast Guard said, tying up fuel, soybean and grains headed for export. Francine’s rains could threaten the region’s cotton crop, agriculture officials said.

Six eastern Louisiana refineries, most around New Orleans, were operating with minimal staff to ride out the storm in the plants. Exxon Mobil’s Baton Rouge refinery cut output to as low as 20% of its 522,500 barrel-per-day (bpd) capacity in preparation for Francine’s landfall.

U.S. crude oil climbed as much as $2 a barrel on Wednesday, driven by fears of lengthy production shutdowns in the offshore oil patch as Francine barreled through.

About a quarter of all oil and natural gas production in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico was offline on Tuesday, according to the offshore regulator. A total of 130 production platforms and two rigs had been evacuated.

Francine was moving northeast on Wednesday with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph (150 kph), the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. A faster motion is expected later in the day. Its center is expected to move across Mississippi on Thursday.

The storm is expected to bring heavy rainfall and the risk of considerable flooding across southeastern Louisiana, Mississippi, far southern Alabama and northern Florida.

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry and U.S. President Joe Biden declared state of emergency for Louisiana.

The hurricane could spare liquefied natural gas plants recently built or expanded near the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, which is home to about 15 per cent of U.S. oil production and two per cent of natural gas output. The storm track was further east than many of the coastal plants.

Texas relieved

As the hurricane moved north along from Texas coast, some ports that had closed to vessel navigation earlier this week including Beaumont, Port Arthur, Sabine and Brownsville began post-storm assessments in preparation for reopening, the Coast Guard said.

Francine has disrupted crop shipments to the Mississippi Gulf region, responsible for about 55 per cent of U.S. soy exports, said Mike Steenhoek, executive director of the Soy Transportation Coalition, an industry group.

“The barge companies are not directing their barge flotillas to go down into that area until the storm exits the region,” Steenhoek said.

Francine’s ultimate impact will depend on how severe the storm is, Steenhoek said. While hoping for minimal disruptions and damage, traders also are watching to see whether Francine brings needed precipitation to the Mississippi River at a time when low water levels have slowed grain transportation.

Farmers in the central Gulf Coast region and the Mississippi Delta were preparing for the storm’s arrival by harvesting crops, including rice and soybeans, where possible, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a weather report.

Much of the region’s cotton crop is vulnerable to damage from rain and winds as their bolls are opening, USDA said.

—Additional reporting for Reuters by Sherin Elizabeth Varghese

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Based on data from Statistics Canada, AAFC raised the seeded area for durum wheat by 22,239 acres at 6.365 million for 2024-25. Projected durum projection was increased from 5.655 million tonnes in the June estimates to 6.30 million in AAFC’s most recent figures. Exports increased 300,000 tonnes to 4.8 million, while feed waste and dockage rose 245,000 tonnes to 662,000, leaving a 100,000-tonne rise in estimated carryout at 800,000 tonnes. The projected carryout for 2023-24 was 350,000 tonnes.

However, AAFC cut its seeded area in 2024-25 for all other types of wheat by 299,000 acres at 20.401 million. Production rose by 191,000 tonnes at 28.937 million. Exports moved up by 50,000 tonnes at 20.55 million, while feed and dockage waste also increased by 141,000 tonnes at 4.676 million. As a result, ending stocks remained at 2.45 million tonnes, 100,000 more than in 2023-24.

Projected canola area for 2024-25 rose by 612,821 acres from the June estimate at 22.007 million acres with production increasing by 528,000 tonnes at 18.628 million. Exports went up by 100,000 tonnes at seven million, while feed and dockage waste added 28,000 tonnes at 327,000. The projected ending stocks were down 400,000 tonnes at 2.1 million, 350,000 tonnes more than the 2023-24 carryout.

Barley area for 2024-25 was trimmed by 748,729 acres at 6.385 million, while production was down 988,000 tonnes at 8.508 million. Exports were down 100,000 tonnes at 2.95 million, while feed and dockage waste were projected to decline by 534,000 tonnes at 5.079 million. Ending stocks would fall by 350,000 tonnes to 600,000, compared to 650,000 tonnes in 2023-24.

Soybean area for 2024-25 rose 160,619 acres from the June report at 5.743 million acres. As a result, estimated production increased by 202,000 tonnes at 7.102 million. Exports were raised by 50,000 tonnes at five million, while feed and dockage waste was up 2,000 tonnes at 348,000. As a result, ending stocks were up 150,000 tonnes at 520,000. Soybean carryout at the end of 2023-24 was 415,000 tonnes.

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Federal ag minister Lawrence MacAulay announced that Diedrah Kelly had been appointed to the post. Kelly is a long-time representative of Global Affairs Canada and recently was Canada’s consul general in Mumbai, India.

The IPAAO, a joint effort between Agriculture Agri-food Canada (AAFC) and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is part of a plan to “increase and diversify Canada’s agriculture and agri-food exports to the Indo-Pacific,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a November 2022 news release announcing the initiative.

“By engaging with stakeholders, regulators, and policy decision makers, it will deepen partnerships with Indo-Pacific partners to diversify export markets and products, create new opportunities, and position Canada as a long-term, reliable trading partner of choice for the Indo-Pacific,” the release said.

This June, then federal ag minister Marie-Claude Bibeau announced the government had chosen Manila as the location for the IPAAO.

“The Philippines is an important partner under the Indo-Pacific Strategy. Hosting this new Office is an opportunity to build on our economic relationship, and enrich people-to-people ties,” Bibeau said in a news release.

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Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau announced the office’s location Wednesday in Ottawa during a meeting with the Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance (CAFTA), which represents Canada’s export-dependent ag commodity groups on international trade matters.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency will man the office as a joint-venture base for a mobile Indo-Pacific team, the government said.

That team, the government said, will work directly with Canadian diplomatic missions, Canadian stakeholders, foreign representatives and other decision-makers across the Indo-Pacific region, to “advance mutual trade objectives for the sector.”

The plan for a dedicated ag office in the region was laid out in broad strokes last November during Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s tour through the region, when he pledged $31.8 million over five years for an AAFC Indo-Pacific office at a then-unspecified location.

Canada’s broader Indo-Pacific strategy, which was telegraphed in Global Affairs Canada’s departmental plan earlier in 2022, was laid out later in November with $2.3 billion pledged in related spending.

The new ag office will work “hand in hand” with Canadian government resources already in place in the Indo-Pacific and help “strengthen partnerships, advance technical co-operation, support Canadian exporters in finding new business opportunities, and help position Canada as a preferred supplier in the region,” the government said Wednesday.

Bibeau on Wednesday hailed the Philippines as “an important partner” under Canada’s Indo-Pacific strategy, and the Manila office as an “opportunity to build on our economic relationship, and enrich people-to-people ties.”

The government, she said, “will continue to help Canadian farmers, food processors and exporters maximize their opportunities, and diversify their markets in the world’s fastest-growing economic zone.”

Trade Minister Mary Ng, in the same release, described the office as “another step forward to reaching our goals” of expanding trade, investment and “supply chain resilience” under the Indo-Pacific strategy.

CAFTA president Dan Darling, in a separate statement Thursday, said the organization is pleased the office will be in the Philippines, a “growing trading partner for Canada and a key member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.”

A trade pact with ASEAN “should be one of Canada’s top trade negotiations priorities,” he said, and “putting technical expertise and boots on the ground to help deepen and strengthen trade and investment ties is a major step forward.”

Canada is still in talks toward such a pact with an ASEAN trade bloc that includes the Philippines as well as Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Canadian Cattle Association president Nathan Phinney, in a separate release Thursday, said producers are “encouraged to see the progress in establishing the (Indo-Pacific ag office) and look forward to seeing the office enhance market access opportunities in the region,” noting the region today takes about 20 per cent of Canada’s beef exports.

Following the 2018 signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) trade deal, Phinney said, cattle producers have seen the “tremendous growth potential in the Indo-Pacific region for Canadian beef exports” and are “excited for future export growth opportunities in the region.”

Canada’s beef exports to Japan alone have increased 70 per cent since the CPTPP’s tariff cuts took effect, the CCA said, also noting Vietnam’s purchases of Canadian beef have grown from $8 million in 2019 to $129 million in 2022, and the Philippines’ from $5 million in 2020 to $13 million in 2022.

The CPTPP bloc’s members in the Indo-Pacific include Australia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam. Canada has also had a free trade deal in force with South Korea since 2015, and is in separate bilateral talks or “exploratory discussions” toward trade pacts with several other Indo-Pacific countries.

Darling said CAFTA is also pleased with the “nimble” concept of a mobile team, which would allow the officials involved to “provide support throughout the vast Indo-Pacific region, which will help agri-food exporters continue to grow their market share in a region that is fiercely competitive.”

Groups including Cereals Canada, Pulse Canada and the Canola Council of Canada previously hailed the plan for an Indo-Pacific ag office, jointly noting in November that while those sectors “enjoy a significant export share within the region and there are great opportunities… the rise of non-tariff barriers may prevent Canada from achieving its full potential in the region.”

Support for resources to deal with sanitary and phytosanitary issues in a “strategic, co-ordinated manner with industry” would help to build, and maintain, market access, they said at the time. — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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The ban had been well flagged and comes after a ship that left its shores with nearly 6,000 cows and 43 crew members capsized in 2020 off Japan.

Minister of Agriculture Damien O’Connor said the legislation would protect New Zealand’s reputation as a global leader in animal welfare standards.

“This bill reinforces and builds on New Zealand’s reputation as a safe and ethical producer of high-quality food products,” he said, adding that the impact on exports would be low.

Live exports by sea account for about 0.2 per cent of New Zealand’s primary sector export revenue, worth about S$33.58 million a year from 2015 to 2019.

The export of live animals by air freight is still allowed.

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“Canada has done extremely well in establishing strong trade relations in a number of key markets thanks to a long-held focus on getting trade agreements in place,” FCC chief agricultural economist J.P. Gervais said in a release.

“While we believe there is still room for growth in diversifying our agriculture export markets, it won’t be easy. The long-term success of Canadian agriculture relies on our ability to provide a greater diversity in commodities and food products for new and existing export markets.”

The 16-page report stated Canada was the world’s fifth largest agricultural exporter in 2018, with about 35 per cent of those exports, worth almost $34 billion, going to the U.S.

Soybeans and pulses have accounted for 20 to 25 per cent of Canada’s total ag exports.

However, trade disruptions, such as the U.S./China trade war, exemplified the over-dependence on one or a few major customers.

As well, when it came to pulses and other crops, Canada has faced increased competition from Asia, South America and the Black Sea region.

From 1999 to 2017, Canadian pulses saw yearly average increases of around 8.3 per cent. Since then, pulse exports slipped, largely due to India hiking import tariffs as its domestic production increased.

There are major impediments to diversifying Canada’s pulse exports, the report noted, such as the added cost of developing those newer trade ties.

Another is the emergence of China as a major player, as it holds a tremendous amount of sway in the global marketplace.

Also, demand from new markets would be curtailed by any slowdown in the Chinese and U.S. economies.

— Glen Hallick reports for MarketsFarm, a Glacier FarmMedia division specializing in grain and commodity market analysis and reporting.

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