MANILA has been named the hub of Canada’s agricultural trade in the Indo-Pacific, the fastest growing economic region in the world.
Marie-Claude Bibeau, Canada’s minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, announced this during her meeting last Wednesday with the coalition of Canadian farmers, the Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance (CAFTA).
“The Philippines is an important partner under the Indo-Pacific Strategy. Hosting this new Office is an opportunity to build on our economic relationship, and enrich people-to-people ties,” Bibeau said.
The Manila office will be a joint venture between the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
Together, they will form a mobile team that will work directly with Canadian embassies and consular offices in the Indo-Pacific region. They will also coordinate with Canadian stakeholders, foreign interlocutors and decision-makers in the region.
“The Office will help strengthen partnerships, advance technical cooperation, support Canadian exporters in finding new business opportunities, and help position Canada as a preferred supplier in the region,” the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada said in a statement.
Canada has been expanding its presence in the Indo-Pacific region, composed of 40 countries and projected to account for more than half of the global economy in 20 years.
The Indo-Pacific region comprise the 11 Southeast Asian countries including the Philippines; northeast Asian economies of China, Taiwan, Japan, North and South Korea, Mongolia; Indian Ocean countries of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, and Nepal; as well as Pacific states Australia, New Zealand and 14-member Pacific Island Countries.
Canada sees expansion of its presence in the Indo-Pacific region to help Canadian farmers, food processors and exporters diversify their market as well as position Canada as the preferred supplier of agricultural and agri-food products.
After the US, the Indo-Pacific region is Canada’s second largest regional export market and trading partner with US$26.5 billion (P1.1 trillion) in annual two-way agri-food and seafood trade in 2021.
Global agrifood and seafood imports into Asean markets have also increased 177 percent—from CAD$72 billion (P3 trillion) to CAD$200 billion (P8.4 trillion) from 2012 to 2022.
In 2022, Canadian agri-food and seafood exports to the Philippines amounted to CAD$669.817 million (P28.17 billion), an increase of 17 percent from 2021.
The Philippines is Canada’s second largest agri-food and seafood market in the Asean region.
The Philippines imported US$258 million worth of meat in 2022 from Canada, most of it pork when the African swine flu swept the country’s domestic pork supply. Other top imports were still agricultural products like cereals, wood, fertilizers and livestock feeds.
In the same year, Philippine agri-food and seafood exports to Canada increased by 18 percent from 2021 to 2022 at CAD$236.683 million (about P10 billion). Many of them were fruits, fruit juices, frozen fish and crustaceans.
“Canada’s agriculture and agri-food exporters have long called for an Indo-Pacific Strategy that would help us seize the many opportunities that exist in these dynamic and fast-growing markets. We are pleased that Canada’s Indo-Pacific Agriculture and Agri-Food office will be established in Manila, a growing trading partner for Canada and a key member of Asean,” Dan Darling, president of the Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance (CAFTA) said.
Image credits: Liskonogaleksey | Dreamstime.com
