MIAgExport

Canada has proven to be an appealing and profitable market for U.S. companies for many years. USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) Office of Agricultural Affairs (OAA) in Ottawa reports that trade with Canada is facilitated by unparalleled regulatory cooperation, sophisticated transportation logistics and financial markets, geographic proximity, similar consumer preferences, and relatively affluent consumers.  Canada's agricultural trade is substantially influenced by intra-industry trade, particularly with value-added products.  But as similar as the U.S. and Canada are, there are differences that exporters must appreciate in order to succeed.

Approximately 90% of Canada's nearly 38 million consumers live within 100 miles of the U.S. border.  As in any foreign market, understanding the nuances of the marketplace is critical to successfully launching a product in Canada.

The North American Free Trade Agreement, (NAFTA), was updated to the United States-Mexico-Canada agreement (USMCA) in September 2018 and should reduce uncertainty over trade with the US. The agreement entered into force on July 1st, 2020. Canada's recent trade agreement with the European Union (EU), the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), is an attempt to reorient more of its trade away from the U.S. and towards Europe. It eliminated 99% of tariffs on both sides and has boosted bilateral trade by about 20%.

U.S. Food & Agricultural Product Imports to Canada, By the Numbers