The Honourable David Emerson, Minister of International Trade, and the Honourable Chuck Strahl, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board, today announced that the Government of Canada has requested consultations with the United States at the World Trade Organization (WTO) on subsidies provided to U.S. corn growers, as well as on the total level of U.S. trade-distorting agricultural support.

“The United States has been providing subsidies to its agricultural producers that create unfair market advantages,” said Minister Emerson. “We hope to see the U.S. live up to its WTO obligations, particularly given that it has the opportunity to do so when it rewrites its Farm Bill this year.”

“Canada is concerned that these U.S. subsidies continue to cause economic harm to our corn farmers,” said Minister Strahl. “That's why we took the action we did, in order to provide the best possible support for our producers by pushing for a level playing field so that they can compete.”

The United States is the world’s largest producer and exporter of corn. In 2005/2006, the U.S. accounted for 41 percent of global corn production and 68 percent of all corn exports. Over the last two years, U.S. corn subsidies have averaged almost US$9 billion per year. Since 1993, Canada has consistently been a net importer of corn, with the United States as the main supplier.

The Government of Canada will work toward resolving this issue through dialogue with the United States. If consultations fail to resolve the matter, Canada has the option of requesting that a WTO dispute settlement panel be appointed to adjudicate the issue. Reducing unfair subsidies will help contribute to a more equitable trading environment for agricultural products. Canada will also continue to work toward addressing trade-distorting domestic support in the WTO Doha negotiations on agriculture.

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