Evidence of meeting #10 for Agriculture and Agri-Food in the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was europe.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:05 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Bev Shipley
Thank you very much, Mr. Eyking.
Now we'll move to Mr. Harris, please, for five minutes.
December 5th, 2013 / 4:05 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
As I understand it, the tariff wall on sugar from beets is 100% currently, and that's coming right down?
4:05 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
So you're going to be able to expand the acreage of the growth of sugar beets. Is there a quota then on how much you're going to be able to export into Europe?
4:05 p.m.
President, Canadian Sugar Institute
There will be no quota on the beet sugar. There will just be the quota on the sugar-containing products.
4:05 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Right, okay.
You're going to be in competition with sugar from homegrown sugar beets in Europe?
4:05 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Are those farmers subsidized to grow that, or upon the signing of the agreement will that subsidy come off?
4:05 p.m.
President, Canadian Sugar Institute
They are heavily subsidized, and we believe we will be very competitive in that market for that reason, because our industry is not, so we've had to compete without subsidies.
The thing that will change in 2017 is that those domestic quotas will come off, but they will retain their tariff protection so the view of the global sugar industry that is not subsidized is that doing that still creates a subsidy.
4:05 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
I just need to get some numbers then, and I might have missed them earlier. If we increase the acreage of sugar beets from about 24,000 acres now, as I understood it, what do you expect that could possibly increase to?
4:05 p.m.
Vice-President, Sales and Marketing, Lantic Inc, Canadian Sugar Institute
We wouldn't have an estimate on that today, because it would depend on the economic model. It's hard to forecast, seven years out, what the selling prices will be in any market, let alone a market that's also going through its own sort of reform.
If everything were fast-forwarded to today, though, we would be very quickly ramping up the plant in Taber to be able to maximize what the plant could put through it. The one minor hitch today is that the Alberta sugar growers use genetically modified beets. They're not acceptable in the European market as it stands today.
4:05 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Right. Okay.
Who are the main suppliers of sugar cane to the Canadian refiners now?
4:05 p.m.
President, Canadian Sugar Institute
Brazil by far is the largest. Other Central American countries, such as Guatemala, are main suppliers as well.
4:05 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
And the sugar itself can never be exported to Europe because of the country of origin of the cane?
4:05 p.m.
President, Canadian Sugar Institute
Yes—unless you paid the 419 euros, which wouldn't be economic.
4:05 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
But you're going to be able mix it into the processed products.
4:05 p.m.
President, Canadian Sugar Institute
A limited volume of products, yes; that's where the production of those products is located.
4:05 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Will all the tariffs will be taken off that product?
4:05 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
This is all new to me. I'm learning on the fly here.
As I understand it, that's where you expect the biggest growth in exports to Europe, as a result of this agreement?
4:10 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
All right.
I have a question about biofuels. I'm kind of new at this one too.
Are we talking about a finished fuel that goes right from the refinery, or from the manufacturer of the fuel, right into the tanks, or is it an additive that you use for fossil fuels to sort of...?
4:10 p.m.
President, Canadian Renewable Fuels Association
It can be both, but it's mostly a blended additive. It is a fuel that is a fuel. Ethanol, for example, is a fuel that can run at the very high level of E85. A lot of vehicles in Canada can run on that level.
It's also an octane enhancer. It would accomplish the same goal as an aromatic or a benzene or what we used to use lead for. Ethanol is a very inexpensive and a very clean octane enhancer.
4:10 p.m.
Conservative
4:10 p.m.
President, Canadian Renewable Fuels Association
That's the question. Right now far more goes into gasoline. We would like to see advanced blends in the diesel market. We would like to see Canada get up to a 5% blend by 2020.