The decision by Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture and the already-announced decision by South Korea on June 26 to resume shipments of Canadian wheat reaffirms the excellent quality and consistency of Canadian the wheat supply, the federal government says.
This marks an end to all international trade actions arising from Canada’s announcement of an isolated discovery of unauthorized genetically modified wheat in southern Alberta on June 14, 2018.
“The Government of Canada welcomes the decision by Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture to lift the temporary suspension on imports of Canadian wheat, following its own thorough scientific testing of Canadian wheat shipments,” the federal government said in a statement.
Based on extensive scientific testing at that time, the Canadian government concluded that this unauthorized wheat is not present in the food or animal feed system, or anywhere other than the isolated site where it was discovered. Officials worked quickly and collaboratively with Japanese authorities to provide the necessary information to convince Japan to resume shipments.
“Canada is a safe and reliable global supplier of wheat,” the statement goes on to say. Canadian wheat production in 2017 was 30 million tonnes across an area of 22 million acres, making it one of the largest field crops in Canada. Canadian exports of wheat globally are valued at approximately $6.6 billion annually.
