Canadian organic growers obtain direct access to European market

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

by SUSAN MANN

A Canadian-European Union arrangement to recognize each other’s organic standards and laws will increase trade and boost Canada’s organic sector, says a spokesman for an organic trade association.

The Canada and European Union Equivalency Arrangement was completed recently after nearly four years of formal negotiations. Matthew Holmes, executive director of the Canada Organic Trade Association, says it is effective immediately.

The arrangement will allow the import and export of certified organic products between Canada and the European Union without the need for additional certification.

“We think it’s really important,” Holmes says. “For producers, food manufacturers and handlers, this really is a significant market access move on the part of the Canadian government that improves the lot for Canadian agriculture.”

Holmes notes the arrangement gives Canadians farmers and processors direct access to a very quickly growing and very lucrative organic market in Europe. It also means “we can sell to buyers in Europe directly now whereas before organic products from Canada had to go through only limited importers who were certified and approved to bring in product.” Canadian exporters were also subject to onerous paperwork to take their products in to European markets.

The arrangement also enables Canadian manufacturers and farmers to only have to get organic certification in this country with standards overseen by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) rather than having to also meet different certification standards from the European Union.

Holmes says the Canadian-European Union arrangement is the second agreement of this type. In 2009, the CFIA and the United States Department of Agriculture signed the first organic equivalency arrangement, which opened the significant U.S. organic market to Canadian exports. Canada is the only country in the world able to deal directly with these two key markets through domestic standards.

Currently Canadian companies annually export more than $390 million worth of organic commodities, ingredients and products to the United States, European Union and other parts of the world.

Certified organic products can now carry the Canadian and/or European Union organic logo. BF