A three day meeting of ministers, secretaries, commissioners and directors of agriculture from Canada, the United States and Mexico made significant progress on issues of agricultural trade relations and rural development activities, Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives Minister Rosann Wowchuk announced.
“Every day the global economy brings opportunities and challenges closer to all of us, so meetings like this are vital to maintaining good trade relationships,” said Wowchuk. “We know our agriculture producers are tested every day with a variety of issues and we, as governments, need to ensure that we’re doing our part to help them succeed.”
Delegates from the states and provinces involved gathered this week in Gimli to look at trade issues, country-of-origin labelling (COOL) harmonization of legislation and regulations, and H1N1 flu. The delegates also discussed the importance of the sector taking action to proactively adapt to climate change and mitigate negative impacts on food production. In addition, there was a panel discussion dealing specifically with the question of agriculture’s role in leading the North American economies out of recession.
Past forums have dealt with issues like the BSE crisis and border closures to beef. The minister noted these discussions are important for the three countries to maintain a good working relationship with the ability to work through troubling times and take advantage of the many great opportunities and advantages that agriculture offers the North American economy.
This year, Wowchuk was the head of the Canadian delegation and conference host. The Tri-National Accord is held every year. Last year officials met in Idaho and next year the meeting will be held in Mexico.
