Thank you.
Canada Pork International is the export market development agency of the Canadian Pork Industry. Established in 1991, it is a joint initiative of the Canadian Pork Council and of the Canadian Meat Council. Our organization deals primarily with market access issues, the promotion of Canadian pork abroad, providing market intelligence as well as working on other significant export-related issues.
For the first eight months in 2009, total Canadian pork exports amounted to 690,593 tonnes, down by 4.7% when compared to the same period in 2008. However, their value reached $1.75 billion, up by 4% when compared to 2008.
I believe all of you have a copy of the export figures for each country. The two most affected markets have been China, whose H1N1 measures taken against us have had a significant impact, and Russia who has delisted most of our plants that were eligible to export their product, owing to very strict and unjustified regulations. Aside from China, the H1N1 virus has not had to date a lasting effect on consumption in our export markets.
However, the ongoing economic crisis is a contributing factor in the decrease or stagnation of our sales to several major markets. U.S. pork exports are also down by more than 12% over last year. Combined with lower Canadian exports, it means there is more pork to be sold in North America, thereby compounding the current crisis. It should also be noted that Canadian pork production is currently up by 4%.
The $17 million allocated over four years by the Government of Canada through the International Pork Marketing Fund is a very timely initiative that supports our efforts to maintain and improve our position on foreign markets. We have undertaken consultations to finalize the related Strategic Plan that will be submitted to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the Minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board in early 2010. We can already foresee very good opportunities on export markets in the medium to long term, provided we successfully differentiate our products from our main competitors, especially the Americans, and more importantly, if we can resolve a good many market access issues that work against us.
We expect that Prime Minister Harper's visit to China in December will result in the lifting of H1N1 restrictions, especially since the Chinese have already announced that they would lift restrictions against the United States. Furthermore, we are counting on the Prime Minister's visit to South Korea to see the free trade agreement between our two countries finalized.
South Korea is a major market for us with significant potential for additional sales of value added products. Given the lack of an FTA, coupled with the fact that the Americans and Europeans have concluded one with South Korea, this means that our industry will be completely shut out of this market within two years. However, we do not support finalizing an agreement at any cost, as current Korean offers regarding Canadian pork are unacceptable. We expect that Canadian negotiators will be able to get Korea to offer us access conditions that are more or less identical to those given to our competitors.
It is also our hope that the two chambers will quickly ratify the Free Trade Agreement with Colombia in order for our industry to respond to the demand for our products, which is very strong following a successful visit by Colombian buyers to Canada.
The negotiations with the European Union are of particular interest to our industry. One of our plants recently became EU-approved and initial shipments have made us realize that the potential of this market is much greater than we had anticipated. Improved access to this large and lucrative market would allow us to sell a wide range of cuts and to add value to the whole carcass, which would benefit both packers and producers.
In conclusion, maintaining and improving our access to foreign markets, especially to larger markets, will be key to the long-term sustainability of the pork industry, as it should remain a major exporter.
Thank you.