|
|
|
|
The
Case for Interprovincial Harmony in the Margarine Industry
On July 18, 1994, First Ministers signed
the Agreement on Internal Trade to eliminate barriers to trade, investment and
mobility within Canada. The
preamble to the agreement identifies the federal and provincial governments’
fundamental policy objective: “... (to) promote an open, efficient and stable
domestic market for long-term job creation, economic growth and stability....” In the Agreement, 10 sectors were identified for
specific action including Agricultural and Food Goods.
Within that sector, governments committed to reconcile a number of
agricultural regulations “such as those relating to margarine.” Although the Agreement came into effect on July
1, 1995, the Canadian margarine industry continues to be hampered by
interprovincial barriers to trade that prevent the creation of
“ an open, efficient and stable” domestic market.
Restrictions on margarine colour, inconsistent requirements for fat
levels, restrictions on advertising and marketing, and a diversity of
approaches to imitation and blended products -- these are the interprovincial
inconsistencies that force additional manufacturing, marketing and distribution
costs on the Canadian margarine industry. Moreover, as tariffs on U.S. margarine are
reduced -- and potentially eliminated -- these regulatory inconsistencies
prevent our industry from achieving the efficiencies that would enable us to
compete with U.S. margarine imports. In
the context of totally open markets between Canada and the United States and
sustained interprovincial trade barriers, Canadian margarine producers would be
at an unfair disadvantage compared to U.S. producers. This document,
The Case for Interprovincial
Harmony in the Margarine Industry, outlines the pressing case to repair
economic inefficiencies. Specifically,
Unilever's recommendations include: ·
interprovincial harmonization of regulations pertaining
to product attributes such as colour and fat levels; ·
consistent Canadian requirements, in the context of an
open North American market, for fat levels based on CODEX standards or
harmonization with the prevailing U.S. standard; ·
removal of restrictions on the advertising and
marketing of margarine; ·
achieving an orderly removal of tariffs to permit the
margarine industry to adjust to international competition; ·
removal of the restrictions on butter/margarine blends. Under
the Agreement on Internal Trade, the federal and provincial governments have
committed to a September 1997 deadline to streamline and harmonize regulations
and standards as a fundamental component of eliminating interprovincial barriers
to trade. In the approximately one
year that remains before this deadline, a significant amount of work must be
completed to remove barriers within the margarine industry.
The sheer volume of regulatory and legislative changes required to
harmonize Canadian domestic markets necessitates concerted effort on the part of
each government. We ask all
governments to proceed expeditiously to implement the terms of the Internal
Agreement on Trade so that both producers and consumers of margarine may realize
the benefits of this important initiative. For more information see Full
Position Paper or contact Sean McPhee at |
|
Copyright © 2004 - All Rights Reserved - No part of this website may be reproduced in any manner or downloaded without written permission from Sean McPhee & Associates Inc. Please report any errors to : webmaster@smcphee.com
.
|