Photo by Curtis Galbraith.

By Curtis Galbraith

Agriculture

Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance launches online pushback against Bill C-282

Oct 30, 2024 | 2:22 PM

The Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance is pushing back against Bill C-282.

The private member’s bill put forward by a member of the Bloc Quebecois would prohibit the federal government from lowering tariffs or increasing quotas for supply-managed sectors like dairy and eggs in future trade negotiations.

The alliance says in a news release that it has launched a website where people can write to Senators, asking them to vote against this idea.

“Bill C-282 poses a direct threat to Canada’s agri-food sector, our trade relationships and the thousands of farmers and their families that rely on open access to global markets to make a living. Today, our members are calling on their fellow Canadians to visit KeepCanadaTrading.ca and ensure Senators know the economic risks if this bill is passed. It’s time for the Senate to do the right thing and protect Canada’s future as a competitive force in international trade,” says alliance president Greg Northy in that same release.

The release also says 90 per cent of the producers in Canada depend on trade, adding the bill could mean more pressure on Canada when the Canada-United Sates-Mexico Agreement comes up for review in 2026.

Bill C-282 is currently before the Senate. It was one of two pieces of legislation the Bloc wanted passed by October 29, or the party would start negotiating with the other opposition parties to bring down the Liberal government.

The other would have seen an increase in old age security for seniors under 75.

Neither bill was passed by that deadline.

The Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance is made up of a dozen national groups.