Actions of Italian government have wiped out a $500 million market. OTTAWA—Exports of Canadian durum wheat to Europe have dried up because of non-tariff barriers imposed by the Italian government, says Cam Dahl, President of Cereals Canada.In less than a year, $500 million in exports have dropped to zero due to protectionist measures imposed by the Italian government that “are completely outside of our trade agreement,” Dahl told the Senate agriculture committee.“A public and assertive response from the Government of Canada is urgently needed,” he said. “If Canada neglects to respond, the value of trade agreements such as CETA will be called into question. And quite rightfully so. Unwillingness to take action would encourage other jurisdictions to follow Italy's lead, causing protectionist practices to spill over.”He asked the Senators “to recommend aggressive enforcement of trading rules when protectionist actions block trade.”While the government has provided strong diplomatic support through contacts with Europe cabinet ministers and officials, it hasn't delivered any results, he said. “We see a much more nationalistic bent in Europe, Italy in particular. Quiet diplomacy is not going to solve this problem. We have reached that stage where we need to take a much more aggressive response.“An anti-Canadian campaign by the Italian farmers union is largely to blame. They have been targeting Canadian durum for a long time, and they've found things that work in the last couple of years.”While Canada could retaliate with a comparable ban on Italian goods, it would be better to find rules-based ways to solve the dispute, he said. “We have been calling for a WTO or CETA challenge to these measures.”Retaliation should be “the very last option, because we are better off when we have free-flowing trade between Canada and Europe.”The federal government has to accept that concluding a trade deal is just the first step and not the end of the process to improving trade, he said. “We also have to have those agreements enforced and followed and the government plays a significant role in achieving that.”The Italian action also highlights a problem with trade agreements that remove traditional trade barriers, he said. “Protectionist governments are going to look for other tools. Their other tools are these non-tariff trade barriers.“This is a problem that's growing over time and is going to continue to grow over time,” he said. “These non-tariff trade barriers are going to be, if they're not already, the No. 1 issue for our organization.“It's a much bigger problem now than it was five years ago. That trend is going to continue and ensuring that our officials have the resources to deal with these issues when they arise is critical.”Another challenge with Europe and other regions is a move away scientific risk-based assessment of food safety, he said. “That's something that Canada needs to lead on, on ensuring that our rules of trade are based on sound science-based and risk-based assessment.”Canada has to make sure these kinds of rules apply nationally as well as internationally, he said. The country needs to avoid “a fragmentation of the Canadian market and that we don't see a fragmentation of Canadian regulations. We do see that and independent provincial responses to some pesticides that are not based on risk and science-based assessments are an example of that.“In cases where Canadian provinces have deviated from science-based regulatory decisions, such as Ontario's ban on neonicotinoids, the outcomes have been counterproductive to Canada's value-added processing and our export interests.”Canada also needs “a coordinated approach to research, driven by public-private partnerships. This is becoming more important over time. Cereals Canada is leading a national wheat research priority-setting process in collaboration with Agriculture Canada,” he said.“This process has brought together the entire value chain to align research efforts around strategic priorities. We believe these efforts will improve the food sector's capability to generate value-added products while ensuring that all research stakeholders are responsive to global consumer demand.”Governments also need to recognize that an increased regulatory burden, regulatory costs and a fragmented internal market inhibit “investment in Canadian value-added processing. For example, the agrifood sector will have to spend more than $2 billion to comply with new food labelling requirements. This is $2 billion that could have been invested in innovation, new technology and plant upgrades. This is a cost that makes Canada a less attractive place to invest.”A regulatory environment “that fosters growth of our value-added sector requires the modernization of the Food and Drugs Act to match the modernization of food safety and inspection,” he said. “When the Food and Drugs Act was written, we couldn't test in parts better billion or parts per trillion.“Reform is also needed to establish regulatory consistency between different government agencies. For example, the tolerances for fusarium-damaged kernels — fusarium is the bacteria that creates deoxynivalenol established by the Canadian Grain Commission are not consistent with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency's regulatory approach to deoxynivalenol or DON. Again, we stress the need for consistent risk and science-based regulations across the industry and across the nation.”Alex Binkley is a freelance journalist and writes for domestic and international publications about agriculture, food and transportation issues. He's also the author of two science fiction novels with more in the works.