Canada’s breach has cost $120m
Successful legal action against Canada has led to a complex sidestep
New Zealand’s dairy industry says financial losses as a result of Canada breaching its trade obligations are continuing to grow. The Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand has hit back at a new proposal by Canada to allocate dairy import quota under the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) free-trade agreement.
Breaches to the agreement were central to a legal case the Dairy Companies Association took against Canada claiming the North American country was manipulating quotas to block exporters’ access to the market. In September New Zealand won the case. Association executive director Kimberly Crewther said it hoped Canada would move swiftly to bring its system into compliance with its free-trade-deal obligations after the successful legal battle, but is instead frustrated at its persistence in seeking to avoid agreed dairy market access being utilised.
“Canada has proposed to use a new and complex formula to allocate import quota in a way that will continue to put the majority of quota access in the hands of domestic processors, who have little interest in importing from CPTPP countries, and
not in the hands of distributors and other importers including retailers who do want to import,” Crewther said.
“This proposal is entirely inconsistent with last year’s legal ruling that Canada must allow importers the opportunity to fully utilise the quotas.”
She said the proposals for the administration of its dairy tariff rate quotas would take an already restrictive import regime even further backwards.
It’s estimated New Zealand dairy exporters have lost $120 million worth of trade opportunities due to Canada breaching its commitments in the first three years of the free-trade deal.
This proposal is entirely inconsistent with last year’s legal ruling that Canada must allow importers the opportunity to fully utilise the quotas. — Kimberly Crewther, Dairy Companies Association of NZ