Midweek podcast: Donald Trump's dairy warning to Canada
A looming trade battle... over milk?
U.S. President Donald Trump took aim at Canadian dairy regulations on Tuesday, saying in a speech to factory workers in Wisconsin that NAFTA trade rules between the U.S. and Canada are a "complete and total disaster" for the United States.
"I don't think the president, of course, knew the nuances of the facts," said Dan Ujczo, an international trade and customs lawyer with Dickinson Wright in Ohio. But added other representatives, including House Speaker Paul Ryan, have also raised the issue.
Canada recently changed its policies on ultra-filtered milk, a protein liquid concentrate used to make cheese, to favour domestic suppliers over U.S. producers. It had been duty-free since the 1994 NAFTA agreement, but the government changed the rules after dairy farmers in Ontario complained about prices.
About 70 dairy producers in both Wisconsin and New York are affected by the new rules, and have lobbied the U.S. government for action on the file.
"It's just one of those issues that I think we're really on a three strikes and you're out with supply management. We talked about it in the TPP, we talked about in the CETA and it's really time to adjust something that's really irrelevant," Ujczo said.
He said he believes elements of the now dead Trans Pacific Partnership, including supply management rules and digital trade, will make their way into a modernized NAFTA.
If pot is not good for your health, why is Ottawa legalizing it?
Justin Trudeau's government faces a "contradiction" ensuring Canadians have access to safe marijuana in 2018, while legitimizing smoking, says Canadian Medical Association President Dr. Granger Avery
Last week, the Liberals tabled legislation to end the prohibition on pot, checking off a major promise from the 2015 campaign. It would allow people to possess up to 30 grams of dried or fresh cannabis and sets the minimum at 18 years of age. The bill does not deal with edible products, such as chocolate bars and chewable gummy sweets, laced with cannabis, but does say that those products will be "made available at a later date."
"It's a bit of a contradiction, isn't it? When you think about the legalization of it and getting it away from the criminal element, that is definitely a step in the right direction. But let's look at this overall, the bad effects of marijuana are definitely there for people to see," he said.
"There are actually 400 different chemicals in marijuana and 60 of those are the cannabinoids," he said. "This is not a benign thing."
Avery said there's some research out there on the effects of marijuana, but more needs to be done in order for doctors to make conclusive recommendations about managing it, including the effects of second-hand marijuana smoke.
He also said that unlike tobacco and alcohol, the government can get the messaging about marijuana right off the bat.
"We're very confident that we can work with the federal and with the provincial ministers of health and others to formulate the regulations around these laws. And we're actually looking forward to that," he said.