Good afternoon, Mr. Shipley, and thank you.
I'm Richard Wansbutter representing Viterra. As you have already introduced the members, I'll skip over that and move very quickly into the substance of the brief presentation.
I'd like to thank the members of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food for allowing this opportunity to speak to you today. It is our pleasure to represent the Western Grain Elevator Association and to be able to appear before you today to discuss the Canada-EU trade deal and its impact on the Canadian grain sector.
I'll give you a quick note on the association. We represent seven farmer-owned public and private grain companies operating in Canada. Together we handle over 90% of western Canada's bulk grain exports. I have a few short introductory remarks regarding the agreement, and then we can try to answer questions that you may have.
As a country dependent on international trade, certainly when it comes to agriculture, the WGEA members fully support the government's significant efforts in concluding this deal. Diversifying markets and expanding market access in key areas around the world will pay long-term and significant dividends for our agricultural exports and the Canadian economy.
I'd like to highlight a few of the key elements and benefits of the trade deal that we see coming about.
There will be additional duty-free access for wheat sales, and that should immediately result in approximately $20.5 million in year one. There will be the potential for increased canola oil shipments with the elimination of tariffs, which is estimated at approximately $90 million. There will be significant increases in pork and beef exports, $600 million on the beef side and $400 million on the pork side.
Why we raise this is that with increased value-added exports on the beef and pork side, this will definitely increase the feeding of feed grains on the Prairies. The elimination of tariffs on processed pulses and exports, such as flour, fibre, wheat, and starch will result in increases. On the commitment to improve consultation and cooperation around biotechnology, it's important to emphasize the need to make progress on the approval processes in order to ensure that Canadian grain and oilseed exporters can gain the full benefit of the Canada-EU trade deal.
At the risk of repetition, this trade agreement with the European Union will improve market access providing significant benefit to our members, farmers, and to Canada.
Thank you very much.
We're certainly open now to questions.