Statement by Ministers Fast and Ritz on U.S. Country of Origin Labelling

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Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada Jun 10, 2013

The Honourable Ed Fast, Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway, and the Honourable Gerry Ritz, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board, today issued the following statement on U.S. Country of Origin Labelling (COOL):

“Despite consistent rulings by the World Trade Organization, the U.S. government continues its unfair trade practices, which are severely damaging to Canadian industry and jobs.

“Our government is extremely disappointed that the United States continues to uphold this protectionist policy, which the WTO has ruled to be unfair, and we call on the United States to abide by the WTO ruling.

“We are preparing to launch the next phase of the WTO dispute settlement process on the new U.S. rule, which we had hoped to avoid by the United States living up to its trade obligations.

“The Canadian government, with the full support and active engagement of Canadian industry, has fought against this unfair treatment, which is also hurting U.S. industry and consumers.

“When the United States failed to comply by the May 23 deadline, we said we would pursue all options available. Today, we are also releasing a list of U.S. commodities for possible retaliation, to be published as soon as possible in the Canada Gazette, as a way to formally launch the consultation process.

“Our government will continue to consult with stakeholders as we pursue a fair resolution of this issue through the WTO over the next 18 to 24 months. To respect Canada’s WTO obligations, our government will not act on these retaliatory measures until the WTO authorizes us to do so.”

Backgrounder - Possible Trade Retaliation Action Against the United States

The following list itemizes the products imported from the United States that may be targeted in response to the failure by the United States to comply with the WTO ruling on certain Country of Origin Labelling (COOL) requirements. The list will be published in theCanada Gazette for the purposes of consulting with interested Canadians. Numbers indicate the tariff heading, sub-heading or item under the World Customs Organization’s Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System.

• 01.02: live bovine animals;
• 01.03: live swine;
• 02.01: meat of bovine animals, fresh or chilled;
• 02.02: meat of bovine animals, frozen;
• 02.03: meat of swine, fresh, chilled or frozen;
• 0207.13.10: cuts of offal, fresh or chilled, of spent fowl;
• 0406.90: cheese, not including the following: fresh (unripened or uncured) cheese, whey cheese or curd; grated or powdered; processed cheese; blue-veined cheese or cheese containing veins produced by Penicillium roqueforti;
• 0808.10: apples, fresh;
• 0809.29: cherries, other than sour cherries (Prunus cerasus);
• 0812.10: cherries, provisionally preserved (unsuitable in that state for immediate consumption);
• 10.05: corn (maize);
• 1006.30.00: semi-milled or wholly milled rice, whether or not polished or glazed;
• 1602.32.11: prepared or preserved-prepared meals of spent fowl; prepared meals of specially defined mixtures;
• 1602.32.92: prepared or preserved-specially defined mixtures, other than in cans or glass jars; spent fowl other than in cans or glass jars;
• 1602.49: prepared or preserved swine cuts, other than ham and cuts thereof; other than shoulder and cuts thereof;
• 1602.50: prepared or preserved meat of bovine animals;
• 1702.20: maple sugar and maple syrup;
• 1702.40.00: glucose and glucose syrup, containing in the dry state at least 20 percent but less than 50 percent by weight of fructose, excluding invert sugar;
• 1702.60.00: certain fructose and fructose syrup, containing in the dry state more than 50 percent by weight of fructose, excluding invert sugar;
• 1806.20: chocolate and other food preparations containing cocoa-preparations in blocks, slabs or bars weighing more than 2 kg or in liquid, paste, powder, granular or other bulk form in containers or immediate packings, of a content exceeding 2 kg;
• 1806.90: other chocolate and other food preparations containing cocoa-ice cream mix or ice milk mix; chocolates; chocolate coated nuts and other confectionery;
• 19.02: pasta, whether or not cooked or stuffed (with meat or other substances) or otherwise prepared, such as spaghetti, macaroni, noodles, lasagna, gnocchi, ravioli, cannelloni; couscous, whether or not prepared;
• 19.04: prepared foods obtained by the swelling or roasting of cereals or cereal products (for example, corn flakes); cereals (other than maize [corn] in grain form or in the form of flakes or other worked grains (except flour, groats and meal), pre-cooked or otherwise prepared, not elsewhere specified or included;
• 19.05: bread, pastry, cakes, biscuits and other bakers’ wares, whether or not containing cocoa; communion wafers, empty cachets of a kind suitable for pharmaceutical use, sealing wafers, rice paper and similar products;
• 2004.10.00: certain potatoes, prepared or preserved otherwise than by vinegar or acetic acid, frozen;
• 2009.11: frozen orange juice;
• 2103.20: tomato ketchup and other tomato sauces;
• 22.04: wine of fresh grapes, including fortified wines; certain grape must;
• 2207.20: ethyl alcohol and other spirits, denatured, of any strength;
• 2940.00.00: certain sugars, chemically pure, other than sucrose, lactose, maltose, glucose and fructose; sugar ethers, sugar acetals and sugar esters, and their salts;
• 3504.00: peptones and their derivatives; other protein substances and their derivatives, not elsewhere specified or included; hide powder, whether or not chromed;
• 71.13: articles of jewellery and parts thereof, of precious metal or of metal clad with precious metal;
• 7306.40.00: certain tubes, pipes and hollow profiles, welded, of circular cross-section, of stainless steel;
• 7321.90: parts for non-electric heating appliances;
• 7326.11.00: grinding balls and similar articles for mills, forged or stamped, but not further worked, of iron or steel;
• 9401.30: swivel seats with variable height adjustment;
• 9403.30.00: wooden furniture of a kind used in offices; and
• 9404.29.00: mattresses of materials other than cellular rubber or plastics, whether or not covered.