Showing posts with label World Trade Organization. Show all posts
Showing posts with label World Trade Organization. Show all posts

2007-10-09

Should Canadians Know Where Their Food Comes From

Apparently Canadian meat producers and the federal government do not think so. According to the CBC website:

“Canadian beef and pork producers want Ottawa to step up its opposition to a United States plan to place country of origin labels and tracking rules on their meat products”.

The groups say that county of origin labeling “would violate North American Free Trade Agreement and World Trade Organization rules”.

“Agriculture Canada officials were not available for comment. The government has written the U.S. government to formally oppose the plan.”

Besides being hypocritical, it would be totally contradictory to then argue that food products in the Canadian market should include country of origin labeling. This is clearly a case of “Free Trade Gone Wild”.

It is one thing to remove trade barriers such as tariffs and government regulations. It is another to prevent consumers from buying Canadian by not allowing them to know where their food comes from