b'THE GAME HAS CHANGED.SO NOW WHAT?With the postwar order changing fast, Canadas agri-food future depends on whether it can adapt faster than its alliesor be left behind. Marc ZienkiewiczTHE MESSAGE IS BLUNT: the post-Second World War rules- playing catch-up, he adds. You cant just show up with based order isnt just frayingits finished. For Canadaspolicy briefs. You need visuals, you need messengers, you seed and agri-food sectors, the question isnt whether thisneed to speak the political vernacular of the day.country can lead globally. Its whether it can even keep up.Were trying to catch up to where the prime minister isCUSMA on the Edgealready running, says Tyler McCann, managing director ofThat reality collides directly with Canadas most important the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute. What wouldvetrade file: the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA). seemed transformational a year ago is now table stakes. The review is already underway, after the U.S. administra-The backdrop is unforgiving. At home, the Liberaltion said a bigger deal wouldnt be forthcoming. Unofficially, government under Mark Carney has promised sweepingCUSMA has already been tested for months by unilateral reforms, starting with demands for every ministry to slashtariffs and election-year rhetoric.budgets by up to 15%. Abroad, the U.S. political climateMcCann is pragmatic. If we arent ready, we could threatens to upend hard-won trade agreements. lose more than just preferential accesswe could lose our Michael Harvey, executive director of the Canadianplace.Agri-Food Trade Alliance (CAFTA), doesnt sugarcoat it.Harvey, a veteran diplomat, underlines the point. Were The level of political risk in your work is fundamentallynext to the worlds largest market. Thats not something you higher now. Weve entered a new world. pivot away from just because the president sends you a rude For Canadian agricultureespecially seedthat newletter.world is defined by two pressures: austerity in Ottawa andBeyond trade lies a deeper reckoning: does Canada even instability in the U.S. have a vision for agriculture?Karis Gutter has seen this before. A former United StatesWere farming fewer acres in Canada today than in the Department of Agriculture (USDA) official now leadingpast 100 years, McCann notes. And we celebrate record government affairs for Corteva Agriscience in Washington,export values while ignoring stagnating volumes. Thats not D.C., he describes the U.S. system as one increasinglysuccessthats inflation.hijacked by attention economics. In other words: Canadas ag story isnt about bumper This isnt about stakeholder engagement anymore,crops; its about missed opportunities.Gutter says. Its about polling, perception, and attention. Executive orders are replacing debate. Meeting Government Where it isThe old playbook of quiet lobbying, stakeholder consen- So, what does courage look like in 2025? For Gutter, it sus, and predictable timelines doesnt work anymore. Weremeans showing up prepared to speak the language of 16 SEEDWORLD.COM/CANADA NOVEMBER 2025'