Everything is on the Table: Agriculture in the Canada-EU Trade Agreement

Most observers agree that the major areas where gains can be made in CETA are in the services sector and selected areas of manufacturing. It seems unlikely that CETA will be as all encompassing as the NAFTA with only a few agricultural products excluded from full tariff elimination. Still, it sends a bad signal if some trade liberalization is not achieved in agriculture and with a long implementation period no reason not to make progress. The major gains in agriculture are likely to be in niche markets which taken individually are small but in aggregate could provide a boost to Canadian agriculture. Most importantly, a trade agreement with the potential to open a rich market with 500 million consumers to the wide range of products and services exported by Canada cannot afford to be hijacked by challenging negotiations in agriculture.