The Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance (CAFTA) is a coalition of Canadian organizations advocating for a freer and fairer international trade environment for the agriculture and agri-food sector.

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CAFTA's members include farmers, ranchers, processors, producers, and exporters from major trade sectors such as beef, pork, grains, oilseeds, sugar, pulses, and soy.

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We are commenting in this process to encourage the United States to maintain the USMCA exemption that has existed under the IEEPA tariffs.

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CAFTA strongly supports the efforts of groups such as the Agricultural Coalition for USMCA, which is advocating to maintain the unified North American trade framework that is vital for supporting high-paying American jobs and strengthening your nation's supply chains.

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We urge you to continue to commit to the agreement as a vital driver of the American farm economy. As your second-largest trading partners, Canada is indispensable to your national economic success, and the USMCA provides the secure, rules-based framework American workers, businesses and farmers need to thrive.

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Canada represents a massive $28 billion export market for US agriculture, with over half of Canada’s agri-food imports originate in the U.S.; buying more US agricultural goods than Japan, South Korea and Taiwan combined.

The USMCA provides crucial certainty for American farmers, ranchers, and agribusinesses by strengthening food and agriculture trade across the continent.

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Imports of Canadian agriculture and agri-food products also help the American agriculture sector export internationally, securing the best price possible for their various commodities.

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Further, American consumers benefit from high-quality food at lower cost when Canadian agri-food products enter the US tariff-free. According to research from Purdue, American families are saving $700 yearly on their grocery bill due to USMCA.

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We note that Canada has robust legislation to prevent goods produced with forced labour from entering our supply chains. In 2020, the Government of Canada introduced a forced labour import ban under the Customs Tariff to meet USMCA obligations. On June 12, the Government introduced a new Act respecting the prohibition of the importation of goods produced by forced labour to strengthen Canada’s existing framework.

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CAFTA therefore calls upon you to maintain the existing USMCA exemption for Canadian agri-food imports, while committing to renew USMCA to protect American prosperity, especially that of American farmers.

Thank you for the opportunity to submit our views.

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​Michael Harvey, 

Executive Director