Although officially ratified earlier this month, the agreement has been provisionally applied since September 2017, with British and Canadian businesses able to trade almost all goods freely and pass on the savings to their customers. Since then, UK exports to Canada have grown by 10.1%.
The ratification of the agreement is expected to boost UK GDP and create jobs in both the UK and Canada. This is the latest positive step for UK meat industry exports to Canada, which were worth £2.3m in 2017.
The UK won approval for the export of manufacturing beef to Canada at the start of 2018.
This approval came following work involving the Agriculture & Horticulture Development Board (AHDB), the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the Food Standards Agency, the UK Export Certification Partnership (UKECP), Quality Meat Scotland and Hybu Cig Cymru - Meat Promotion Wales.
The previous agreement had covered both primal cuts and manufacturing beef, but UK officials worked to ensure manufacturing beef could be tested to the microbiological standards required by the Canadian authorities.
International market development director at AHDB Dr Phil Hadley said: “This agreement is good news for meat exporters here in the UK and marks an important step towards our future trading relationship with Canada.
“Our world-renowned reputation for high standards of animal welfare and sustainable production is popular with Canadian consumers, who value and demand healthy and nutritious products.”
International trade secretary Dr Liam Fox said: “CETA is one of the most ambitious free trade agreements, and British businesses and consumers are already feeling the benefits since the agreement came provisionally into force last year. The agreement eliminates almost every tariff on goods traded between our two countries and we will transition it into UK law after we leave the European Union, so that businesses can continue to enjoy as free and frictionless trade as possible.
“We stand with Canada as the strongest of allies and we share a commitment to an ambitious global free trade agenda in the face of increased protectionist tendencies around the world.”
