Cattle associations have beef with potential Mercosur trade deal

OTTAWA — Canadian cattle producers want the federal government to omit beef from the free trade agreement it is pushing to sign with the South American Mercosur trade bloc by the end of the year.

Tyler Fulton, Manitoba-based cattle producer and president of the Canadian Cattle Association, said at a press conference on Wednesday that a deal with Mercosur that includes beef access makes Canada more dependent on beef imports and hurts food security at home and abroad.

He said beef producers can’t continue producing beef at home and exporting it around the world if Canada’s domestic market is undercut by Mercosur countries.

“Our concern with a Mercosur free trade negotiation is not about protectionism, but overexposure,” he said. “If our market is flooded with cheap imports, it will send a negative signal to the next generation of ranchers.”

Canada launched negotiations in 2018 seeking a free trade agreement with the South American trading bloc, which includes Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay.

Huzaif Qaisar, spokesperson for Canada’s minister of international trade, told The Canadian Press the goal is to have the deal signed by the fall or hopefully sooner.

The government has not yet responded to a request for comment on the concerns of beef producers.

Fulton said Canadian beef is “not a bargaining chip” and that producers need the government to stand up for the sector in the negotiations.

The federal government’s website says Canada’s merchandise trade with Mercosur reached $15.8 billion in 2024, with Canada’s exports valued at $3.1 billion and imports valued at $12.8 billion.

The website says a free trade agreement with Mercosur could reduce tariffs on Canada’s automotives, information and communications technology, industrial machinery, chemicals and plastics, and forestry exports by up to 35 per cent.

Other industries that could see lower tariffs include medical goods, pharmaceuticals and aluminum.

Fulton said a deal with Mercosur risks Canada’s trading relationship with the United States.

“We can diversify, however, we should not diminish the importance of the USA. The North American beef sector is highly integrated in its supply chain,” he said. “U.S. industry has flagged their concerns with Mercosur beef in the U.S. and in Canada, and on the eve of the CUSMA review, we do not need to add irritants. It’s simply not worth the risk.”

Representatives from the National Cattle Feeders Association and the Beef Farmers of Ontario were also at the press conference, as were Conservative MP Adam Chambers and Bloc Québécois MP Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay.

Cathy Jo Noble, vice president of the National Cattle Feeders Association, said beef access in the Mercosur trade deal would result in increased imports of low-quality beef raised with lower standards for animal health, labour, food safety and the environment.

“Primarily, cattle feeders have ongoing concerns regarding the foot and mouth disease history, (Bovine spongiform encephalopathy) reporting transparency and the sanitary and phytosanitary compliance in parts of the Mercosur region,” she said. “Protecting animal health is foundational to Canada’s beef industry and must remain an absolute priority in trade policy.”

“A foreign disease outbreak could have catastrophic impacts on the livelihood of cattle feeders, ranchers and the economy of rural Canada.”

Speaking to reporters, Fulton said there is no estimated dollar impact of what the Mercosur agreement could cost the Canadian beef industry.

“We don’t have details exactly on what is on the table,” he said. “It seems hasty, the speed with which they’re moving.”

Fulton said his organization has been engaging at the ministerial level but hasn’t been getting answers to its questions. He said there is an understanding that Mercosur countries hold beef access to Canada as a priority in the agreement.

“It’s very difficult for us to plan and respond and advocate on behalf of our industry when we don’t have transparency as to what is being discussed,” he said.

The Canadian Cattle Association website says its data does not suggest there is any significant export opportunity for Canadian beef in the Mercosur countries, and Fulton said past trade deals have not been good for them.

“Our recent experience has been of bad deals like the U.K. and CETA where there is no reciprocity,” he said. “These markets get to import their beef into Canada while creating barriers for us to export our beef there. Our world may be changing, but what doesn’t change is our need to be strategic about trade and not to diversify for the sake of diversifying.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 6, 2026.

Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press