New Delhi/Ottawa, March 13 (Agency) Following Canadian Trade Minister Mary Ng’s talks in New Delhi, the Indian government has agreed to indefinitely lift fumigation penalties on import of Canadian pulses into the country, a factor that was hampering its trade for several years. Mary Ng said in a tweet: “Following our successful pre-trip advocacy, I am happy to share that India will indefinitely lift fumigation penalties on Canadian Pulse shipments, until a systems approach is agreed upon. “This is a great win for our pulse industry.” Pulse Canada issued a statement welcoming the announcement of relaxation on fumigation penalties. On Friday, Mary Ng met with Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal in Delhi, following which the two sides announced relaunching of negotiations on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which had been stalled since 2017. Ng’s visit is the first high-level Canadian government visit to India since Prime Minister Trudeau’s highly-criticized trip in 2018. Besides re-launching FTA talks, the two ministers agreed to pursue an “early progress” agreement that would include commitments around sanitary and phytosanitary measures. Both countries also agreed to “undertake intensified work with respect to the recognition of Canada’s systems approach to pest risk management in pulses,” according to a joint statement. As part of that work, India has committed to lifting the pre-arrival fumigation requirement for Canadian pulse shipments until a permanent solution is found, a move that builds on the recent promise by the Indian government to exempt Canadian pulses from the fumigation requirement until 2024.
“Canada welcomed India’s consideration to allow the import of pulses without penalty in case of fumigation on arrival by Methyl Bromide (MBr) until finalization of a systems approach for Canadian pulse,” the joint statement said. The fumigation requirement has been an on-again, off-again phytosanitary barrier and source of uncertainty for sales into Canada’s largest pulse crop export market going back to 2004. Canada has repeatedly sought exemptions from the requirement, as the required fumigant — methyl bromide — is ineffective in Canada’s cold temperatures and viewed as a pollutant. Without the exemption, un-fumigated shipments are subject to a penalty or fee upon arrival, according to a report. “We are encouraged to see the priorities of the Canadian pulse industry featured prominently in trade talks, specifically the focus on advancing Canada’s system-based approach and the inclusion of additional sanitary and phytosanitary measures in an Early Progress Agreement,” Corey Loessin, chair of Pulse Canada, said in a statement.
“It will be important to build on the positive momentum from India’s recent announcement regarding the indefinite allowance of pulse imports without penalty in case of fumigation on arrival with methyl bromide by finalizing a permanent solution based on a recognition of Canada’s systems approach,” he added. Loessin said it was positive to hear both sides express strong support for international rules-based order and supply chain resilience in critical sectors. With regard to agricultural imports from India, Canada has agreed to work on market access for Indian-grown crops such as sweet corn, baby corn, and banana. The Canadian side also agreed to expedite its consideration of a request to facilitate organic food imports from India. Negotiations between India and Canada on CEPA were launched in 2010.