Reducing U.S. market dependence in food, beverage exports daunting challenge

Opinion

Diversifying the Canadian economy has become central to almost any discussion about how to deal with our increasingly volatile next-door neighbour.

There’s growing recognition whatever emerges from the current U.S. administration’s reforms will bear little resemblance to the country and ally Canadians once knew. For the sake of our own survival, it’s time to move on.

Nowhere is that realization more critical than in food and agriculture.

Farm Credit Canada took a swing at quantifying just what it would take to achieve diversification in a newly released report that uses 2023 trade statistics as a starting point.

It identifies opportunities for Canada to shift $12 billion worth of agriculture and food exports away from the American market by focusing more on growing domestic de