Negotiations continue to chug along in Geneva - WTO agriculture negotiators have been at the table all week trying to move the negotiations forward. The talks have shifted into high gear as countries are starting to put more proposals in writing. A sustained campaign by the United States calling for balance between reductions in domestic support and market access appears to have put the EU back in the crosshairs on tariff reduction. High level political discussions over the coming weeks may result in some movement, but negotiators are skeptical about meeting their self-imposed April 31st deadline for an agreement on agriculture.
Cautious optimism on outcome of the Biosafety Protocol meeting - The third meeting of the parties to the Biosafety Protocol was held this past week in Brazil and despite Brazil’s changing its position at the last moment, the International Grain Trade Coalition (IGTC) was able to maintain the support of Mexico and Paraguay in the negotiations on article 18.2(a). This article covers documentation for shipments of living modified organisms (LMOs).
The Canada Grains Council has been instrumental in the strategy of the IGTC and Grains Council official Dennis Stephens was able to provide an overview at this week’s annual meeting the Grains Council. He cautioned that the final text of the Biosafety Protocol meeting is not available, so no definitive conclusions can be reached. However, Stephens said it appears that the grain trade will be able to meet the requirements of the countries that have ratified the protocol, including using the invoice for documentation of the LMOs in the shipment, using the term "may contain" for those LMOs in commercial production and using "contains" only when the LMO is known to be in the shipment through systems such as identity preservation. The IGTC is currently reviewing the draft text and will be developing strategies to deal with issues that are unclear or still unresolved.
Government policy integral to Canadian biodiesel growth - Adam Levine, president of the Canadian Bioenergy Corporation in Vancouver, told the Canada Grains Council meeting this week in Winnipeg that Federal government needs to set specific targets for the diesel pool. If it doesn’t, the government’s target of five percent renewable fuels by 2010 could all be met by a 7% ethanol blend in the gasoline pool. Mandating a 2% biodiesel blend in Canada by 2010 would require 500 million litres of biodiesel, which would account for 1.25 million tonnes of canola seed. He said the target could increase to one billion litres by 2015, or 2.5 million tonnes of canola. He pointed out that a mature biodiesel industry in Canada needs to be based on canola since canola-based biodiesel performs much better in cold weather than all other feedstocks.
New biodiesel plant south of the BC border looking for prairie canola, for now - Washington Biodiesel president Daniel Malarkey announced this week that his company is planning to construct a facility in Warden, Washington that will supply 35 million gallons of biodiesel and 200,000 tons of canola meal to the state each year starting in 2007. Malarkey says that initially he’ll source canola from Canada and North Dakota but once the plant is operational, he hopes that Washington growers will provide canola for the plant. This is the largest of four new biodiesel plants set to open soon in the state of Washington.
US senators introduce legislation to extend biodiesel tax incentive - Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley and Ranking Member Max Baucus have introduced legislation to extend alternative energy tax incentives, such as the biodiesel excise and income tax incentive for biodiesel and biodiesel blends, until 2010 from 2008. The move has the unqualified support of the American Soybean Association. Last year, U.S. biodiesel production tripled to 75 million gallons.
Council welcomes two new Board members – Doug Hooper, executive director of Canadian Bioenergy Corporation, and Brian Tischler, Alberta grower and president of the Canadian Canola Growers Association, joined the Board of Directors of the Canola Council of Canada at the annual meeting March 17. For the complete listing of the Council’s Board of Directors, go to http://www.canola-council.org/about-us/canola-council-of-canada/ccc-board.shtml.
New agronomist joins Council in the Peace - Jackie Heck joins the staff of the Canola Council of Canada as the new agronomist for the Peace region. Jackie was raised on a mixed farm in central Alberta near Eckville, and has a B.Sc. in Environmental and Conservation Science from the University of Alberta. She has been an agronomist and crop scout with Cargill AgHorizons in the Peace region as well as a summer technician with Syngenta Crop Protection in Calgary.
FDA posts link to USCGA petition for a qualified health claim for canola oil - The U.S. Canola Association (USCA) filed its petition for a qualified health claim (QHC) for canola oil and reduced risk of heart disease in early January this year with the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. The agency filed the petition for formal review on Feb. 28 and the petition was recently posted to FDA’s web site for public comment for 60 days until May 2. Check the site for details of the claim application.
The agency has 270 days from Jan. 9 to reply to the petition (Oct. 6), although it may request one or more extensions. It is estimated that a response from FDA will come no sooner than a year from now. The petition was written by Guy Johnson, PhD, of Johnson Nutrition Solutions and reviewed by an eight-member USCA working group, including legal counsel and representatives of the Canola Council of Canada and Northern Canola Growers Association, as well as by an industry nutrition scientist and two academic nutrition scientists.
Survey shows canola oil sales potential in Quebec and Ontario – A survey commissioned by the Canola Council shows there’s considerable headway still to be made in sales of canola oil in Quebec and Ontario. Council utilization VP Dave Hickling says it’s obvious that more ‘consumer pull" promotion efforts need to be directed to those provinces. An A.C. Neilson survey showed canola oil accounts for 66 percent of the tonne volume of salad and cooking oils, excluding olive oil, sold in the Atlantic provinces and 83 percent in the west but just 34 percent in Quebec and 25 percent in Ontario.
Canola Council annual turns the Big Apple canola yellow – Over 200 registrants at the Canola Council of Canada’s 39th annual convention got their marching orders directly from the mouths and minds of celebrity food media and chefs – there’s lots more promotion work to be done before canola oil wins their hearts. The meeting heard of the success the olive oil industry has had in getting its message of good health and snob appeal across to the culinary community. The speakers challenged the canola industry to market ‘high end’ and develop niche products to raise the profile of what even they admitted was the healthiest oil of all. Check the Council website next week for many of the convention presentations.
Aussies in New York for Council convention – Two representatives of the Australian Oilseeds Federation - Rosemary Richards and John Slee - attended the Council’s convention this past week to discuss possible future collaborations, particularly in canola research.
Reporters took a big bite of the Big Apple – Media coverage of the Convention was extensive and positive. Reuters posted an interview (type canola oil in Search) with Board Chair Herb Schafer the first day of the meeting. Following the sessions, the Western Producer and the Manitoba Co-operator carried stories with promises of more in the coming weeks.
Move over olive. Dietitian says Americans need to put canola oil in their pantries - Registered dietitian Elaine Magee has a new Pantry Makeover video feature on WebMD’s homepage. Check it out at www.webmd.com/content/pages/25/113400.htm.
Canola Ink is your biweekly update from the Canola Council of Canada. Please copy, reprint or transmit any portion of this report. If you have questions or comments, contact Diane Wreford at (204) 982-2108 or e-mail wrefordd@canola-council.org.
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