International Trade committee  I have a little introduction here. This activity of mine with Japan began four years ago, following a holiday trip to visit friends. I learned quite quickly that one aspect of the culture in Japan is gift giving. It's intertwined in the society. For many years in my B & B I

International Trade committee  I did, as a matter of fact.

International Trade committee  Yes. I'm going up in the world.

International Trade committee  Just to reiterate, I brought a few cakes, and even though people did know about fruitcakes—they import 60% of what they eat into the islands of Japan—most of those cakes were coming from Germany and England. They had never tasted such a good one from Canada. To modify this cake,

International Trade committee  I did. I thought maybe I could get on that wagon there.

International Trade committee  Yes, I was fortunate on this trade mission that I participated in three years ago to have the support of the partner I work with. The mission was part of the federal government. We'd had a show in the embassy in Tokyo, and then we went to Osaka and I was able to get a substantial

International Trade committee  I do have one thing to add.

International Trade committee  It's my understanding that the consulate was closed in Osaka, but one was opened in Nagoya. The reason for that I was told is that the commercial activity in Nagoya and area is much more vibrant than in the Kansai area, which in the food business, according to the people I work w

International Trade committee  I don't have the answer to that, quite frankly.

International Trade committee  I think they do.

International Trade committee  No. Well, 60% of what they eat, they import. I really don't know why they do that, quite frankly.

International Trade committee  Yes, actually; there is a form that you can have attached to your export, which is CFIA approved. You bring all your science. My cake has thousands of dollars of science behind it to guarantee that people won't get sick. That form then goes along with the shipment. The freight po

International Trade committee  Yes. I think in the food business a lot of these questions could be asked of the brokers who actually negotiate the deals with customs. In my experience, at least, the importer lets the broker do all the negotiating. They're Japanese; they like to keep it—

International Trade committee  They like the familiarity. Another thing I learned quite quickly was that they don't like to deal with lawyers. I've never had any legal agreement. I've never signed anything. It's always been done on word of mouth. I've been paid on time. It's a whole different approach to d

International Trade committee  It's beginning, actually. In Saskatchewan, for example, there is a berry that has been grown, the haskap berry, which initially came from Hokkaido. This summer will be the first mechanical cultivation of this berry. I hope to acquire 50 pounds of it once dried, and incorporate th