India not likely to drop pulse tariff soon

To the chagrin of Saskatchewan farmers, there appears to be no immediate end in sight to an ongoing trade rift between Canada and India.

There are potentially billions of dollars at play in the dispute, which centres around India increasing import tariffs on Canadian pulses, which largely come from the Prairies. India recently increased its imports on chickpeas to 40 per cent and has imposed a 50-per-cent tariff on peas.

Despite Prime Minister Justin Trudeau being in India, there is little optimism he will find an end to the dispute.

Federal Minister of International Trade François-Philippe Champagne, who was in Regina on Wednesday discussing trade and exports, said the issue is “something that I’ve been raising all the time.”

He said he suspects “this was something that was discussed between the relevant parties” during Trudeau’s trip and that Canada is seeking a “win-win outcome” with India regarding the issue.

The federal MP said Canadian farmers want predictable stability, while India wants food security, and that those “interests are aligning.”

But the dispute is a multi-faceted one, according to Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister Lyle Stewart.

For one, Canadian shipments have been stopped because they do not meet a fumigation requirement of India. In previous years, Canada was exempt from this because the cold climate kills the pests involved and the chemical used to kill them is illegal to use here.

Stewart says that means Canada “can’t really comply ” but the Indian government “still insists we do.”

Saskatchewan’s agriculture minister added the longer the issue drags out in India, the longer it will take to reverse.

“Farmers right here are cutting back on their lentil and pea acreage, and it takes a while to turn that around once these measures are taken,” he said, noting “right now it doesn’t look promising ” for the Indian government to reverse its decisions.

Complicating the matter are political issues taking place in India. The Hindu-majority country has raised concern that a rise in Sikh extremism is being fostered in Canada.

Sikhs in India have long wished — and in some cases, fought — for an independent homeland, called Khalistan. Despite saying otherwise, there have been allegations Trudeau’s government, including members of his cabinet, supports this.

Stewart said he doesn’t know what to do about that and that it is “certainly out of my hands” but “it makes it harder to talk” about the tariff issue.

But he is finding some positivity. He says India had back-to-back years of good crops and is beginning to see itself as self-sufficient — but that those outstanding crop years came with high levels of lentil subsidies from the Indian government.

“I don’t think they can maintain that year over year, and I think they’ll need us,” he said.