Amid Trade Tensions with China, Canada Strives to Diversify Canola Export Markets

Trade tensions between China and Canada stemming from the arrest of Huawei Technologies’ CFO last year in Vancouver for extradition to the U.S. have led to China banning Canadian oilseed imports (as well as beef and pork).

Now, in an interview on October 28 in Geneva, Switzerland, where China and Canada met in-person for the first time for negotiations, Brian Innes, vice president of public affairs for the Canola Council of Canada, said that the need to diversify the country’s canola export markets is clear. Toward that end, Canadian canola exports during the first two months of the 2019/20 crop year (August - September) soared by 816 percent, or 150,100 tons compared to the year before, and during the same time period, canola seed exports to Japan jumped by 70 percent, or 92,200 tons; exports to the EU jumped by 134 percent, or 83,200 tons; exports to Mexico jumped by 41 percent, or 55,200 tons, and exports to Pakistan jumped by 25 percent, or 36,300 tons, compared to last year.

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