The commitment was announced by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau following a meeting in Buenos Aires with Argentinian President Mauricio Macri.

"A strategic priority of Canada’s export-dependent meat industry is competitive access to every
country in the world," said Canadian Meat Council President Troy Warren.

"Per capita pork consumption is increasing in Argentina and the restoration of access to that market will represent another concrete step toward the realisation of this longstanding and high priority industry objective," added Mr Warren.

The Canadian Pork Council also welcomed the announcement. CPC’s Chair, Rick Bergmann, stated: "We are extremely fortunate to have excellent animal health status and a strong reputation all over the world as a supplier of safe high quality pork."

"This restored access provides important opportunities for the Canadian pork industry and given that we export well over two-thirds of our production, improving market access enables us to achieve the best overall return for our producers."

The final step remaining in the process will be a visit to Canada by Argentinian food safety officials who will conduct an audit of Canada’s meat inspection system. It is anticipated that, when achieved, the restoration of pork access to Argentina could result in exports of high quality Canadian cuts valued at approximately $16 million annually.

In other news, Canadian pig producers are being warned that the onset of cold weather means the risk of exposure to Porcine Epidemic Diarrhoea (PED) virus is likely to increase.