Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you for your presentations this morning, ladies and gentlemen.
I'm familiar with Clearwater and the great work you do in Japan. About a year ago, I had the opportunity to be with your president as we did a taste test with a Japanese audience. It was mostly lobster, but there were 10 or so different dishes that chefs made up over there. It went over extremely well. We had a pet lobster in the box, some 20 pounds—just a monster—that we held up to show the size and scope of the industry.
You're absolutely right, Christian, that trade is critical to the growth of this industry. We know the potential is there. That's the first time I've heard someone talk about a trade triangle, and you're spot on with that. The more people you have vying for your product, the more valuable the product becomes.
On a trip with the Prime Minister in China, we were at Hangzhou at an operation called Alibaba (China) Co., Ltd. Jack Ma said that, in honour of the Prime Minister's being there, he was going to offer Canadian lobster for sale on his site. He had 250,000 lobsters. They sold in nine minutes. You're absolutely right in defining the Asia-Pacific area. Vietnam has a real problem getting top-quality Canadian product.
We're at a delicate stage with the TPP. We seem to be waiting for the Americans to ratify it before we jump into the arena. Do you think that's right, or should we show leadership and move forward rather than waiting for the next president? Neither Democrats nor Republicans seem to be in favour of this deal. Should we move forward on our own and show leadership?
Christine, I'll start with you.