Mr. Aaron Fowler at the International Trade Committee

On February 5th, 2021. See this statement in context.

February 5th, 2021 / 2:10 p.m.

Chief Agriculture Negotiator and Director General, Trade Agreements and Negotiations, Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food

Aaron Fowler

I would agree. I think this is largely an exercise in preserving the opportunities for access to the United Kingdom market that our exporters have enjoyed in recent years, including since the provisional application of CETA. We see it as an important market. Our stakeholders see it as an important market.

The European Union is the world's largest importer of agriculture, food, fish and seafood products, and fully 20% of Canada's recent exports of those products to Europe were destined for the United Kingdom—over $550 million worth of agricultural food and seafood products in 2019—and I think that—

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