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Saskatchewan farmers are bracing for a major hit after China announced plans to impose a nearly 76 percent tariff on Canadian canola starting August 14, effectively shutting the door on one of the crop’s biggest markets.
Dale Leftwich, policy manager with SaskOilSeeds, said the duty is steep.
“It’s so large that it’s hard to see how any canola would be going into China … one of the biggest markets that we have has been effectively shut down,” Leftwich said.
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He warned the timing could not be worse, with many producers already dealing with drought, high input costs and smaller-than-ever yields in parts of the province. Losing China as a buyer, he added, would force some farmers to store their crop longer, creating extra cost and risk, including spoilage and limiting storage space.
Leftwich also noted the tariff’s potential scale, saying an initial $40 per-tonne price drop multiplied across roughly 10 million tonnes of canola could add up to “an awfully big number in a hurry.”
Federal Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience, Eleanor Olszewski, said the government disagreed with the tariff and is working on a response while visiting Saskatoon on Tuesday.
“We’re very disappointed to hear about China’s tariffs. Obviously, we disagree with those tariffs … the federal government will make sure we stand up for workers in that sector,” Olszewski said.
She told reporters the message to farmers is clear: “Ottawa has their back, just as it did in previous trade disputes over steel and aluminum.”
She added that nothing was off the table when it came to protecting producers and the broader economy tied to the crop.
The federal minister said officials were still formulating their next step, but stressed that trade negotiators and other specialists would be tasked with finding solutions.
China has become one of Canada’s largest canola customers in the past decade, buying both seed and processed products. The country has restricted canola imports before, but Leftwich said this nearly 76 per cent tariff is broader, covering seed as well as oil and meal, leaving few ways for Canadian exporters to compete.
Farm groups warned the move would have a ripple effect beyond the farm gate, hitting processors, suppliers and small towns that rely on agricultural spending.
“This is devastating to the farmer, devastating to the person they’re buying supplies from and devastating to all of the small towns that rely on business from farmers,” Leftwich said.
The nearly 76 per cent tariff is scheduled to take effect on August 14.
— with files from 980 CJME’s Lisa Schick and 650 CKOM’s Marija Robinson
