Farm-Scape is sponsored by Manitoba Pork Council and Sask Pork Play Audio Farm-Scape is a Wonderworks Canada production and is distributed courtesy of Manitoba Pork Council and Sask Pork.

Farm-Scape, Episode 1157

The Canadian Pork Council says it will be May, at the earliest, before Canada's pork industry will know how an antidumping investigation launched by Mexico against US pork will impact Canada. Mexico's pork industry has alleged US pork entered the country from April through September last year in a manner that represents dumping causing injury to Mexican pork producers.

Last week the Mexican government published its intention to undertake an antidumping investigation.

Canadian Pork Council Executive Director Martin Rice says, if the investigation does result in a large duty, it will impact the competitiveness of US pork verses other sources, such as Canada, in Mexico.

"The preliminary investigation appears to take about four months so you would be looking into May, mid-May, before there would be any indication from the Mexican investigators that they've found evidence of dumping.

We wouldn't have any notion of the legitimacy of the claim so I wouldn't want to suggest that there would be any dumping margins found.

If they did find evidence then they would put into place a provisional duty while they continue their investigation.

It includes a public hearing as late as November of this year so there would be, say from May on if a duty was found, several months where you have a duty in effect. I guess there's also a likelihood that there won't be any dumping margin found and there won't be any implications for the competitiveness of US pork verses other country's pork going into Mexico."

Rice points out, if the trade anticipates a duty, it could prompt an accelerated rate of Mexican importation. He says, in that case, the US would be a prime source for those imports prior to any duty coming into effect.

For Farmscape.Ca, I'm Bruce Cochrane.