Gerry Ritz (file photo)

 

On May 18, the World Trade Organization (WTO) is expected to announce its decision on the United States' Country of Origin Labelling (COOL) appeal.

The US is appealing the ruling made by the WTO last fall which was in favour of Canada.

Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz said US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack seems to be coming around on the issue.

"He recognizes now the economic hurt that this is actually doing to his own industry. He's given instructions to the administration to bring forward a piece of legislation that will either look at a NAFTA label, which or course would encompass us, or something that would seek to repeal what COOL has done."

Ritz noted that he is in favour of the repeal, which he says would help prevent this issue from coming up again in the future.

Canada has threatened to enforce retaliatory tariffs against the US, if the Americans do not comply with the ruling.

The WTO has now ruled in favour of Canada three times.

Meantime, Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz says Canada continues to be a force at the bargaining table for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

He was responding the US notion that Canada was waiting for the other 11 countries to submit their proposals before submitting an offer.

Ritz notes that it's very important for Canada to be part of this agreement.

"It's not that there's new access tied into TPP, it's to maintain the flows that we have and certainly everyone agrees that Japan is the crown jewel of this particular agreement," he said. "It still comes down to the fact that the Americans have to be able to sign this deal at the end of the day. We've seen the legislation they put forward on TPA (trade promotion authority), there's a lot of off-ramps there that are brand new that concern major players like Japan and Canada. At the end of the day, can they actually consummate the deal."

Ritz says Canada will continue to work directly with Japan, if the TPP stalls at the hands of the Americans.

The countries involved in the TPP trade talks include Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam.