Canadian Lawyer InHouse

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2018 22 INHOUSE The dairy sector has been one of the most frequent targets of the Trump rhetoric, with the U.S. president regularly claiming that Canada has been "very unfair" to farmers in Wisconsin. "It is a challenge. You have to respond selectively and take the high road," Mills notes. The USMCA agreement grants access to about 3.6 per cent of the Canadian dairy market. After the trade deal was announced however, the head of the Wisconsin Farm - ers Union said the concession will do little to help its members. The dairy industry there is facing issues of over-supply and the Cana- dian market is not large enough to address these problems. For dairy farmers in Canada, the USMCA agreement and other recent trade treaties have cumulatively opened up access to about 18 per cent of the domestic market. "This is death by a thousand cuts," says Mills. "It is important to get the right informa - tion out there. There is a lot that is anec- dotal," he says. One example is the price of fluid milk, where the data shows that Canada ranks roughly in the middle and the price is lower than in the U.S., Australia and France, for example. A healthy dairy industry, stresses Millis, is also vital to related industries. "Our mes - sage on a go-forward basis is you can't keep whittling away," he says. While the combative nature of the U.S. government under Trump has injected a new level of unpredictability, especially for certain sectors, it still remains far and away the largest trading partner of Canada. The North American trading zone, including Mexico, accounts for more than a quarter of the world's economy, Trudeau noted after the agreement was reached. At the same time, is the current political climate an opportunity for Canadian busi - nesses to look beyond the U.S. and search for other markets? This is something to consider in the area of investment as well as trade, says Goldman. "Canada has many bilateral investment trea- ties with investor protection." Ultimately, he says, the goal is to seek "more certainty" in any trading or investment situation, whether in the U.S. or another country. Edmond Luke, a partner in the Vancou - ver office of Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, says it is time to consider other trad- ing opportunities. "Should Canada diversify beyond the U.S.? Of course, the answer is yes. I think we are heading into an era where across the Canadian business community we are going to be more purposeful and serious about expanding beyond the U.S., which has been the 'low-hanging fruit' in terms of trade," says Luke, co-leader of the firm's China group. "It is not necessary for Canada to see the U.S. and Asia as mutually exclusive such that it is only possible to pursue one at the ex - pense of the other," he says. "We've always had good trade relations with Japan and Ko- Jacqueline was a partner at Mathews, Dinsdale & Clark LLP, for 19 years. © 2018 Thomson Reuters Canada Limited 00250QW-91913-CE OUR QUALITY STARTS WITH OUR PEOPLE Now her job is to make you better at yours. Practical Law Canada provides legal know-how that gives lawyers a better starting point. Our expert team of lawyer-editors creates and maintains thousands of up-to-date, practical resources across all major practice areas. We go beyond primary law and traditional legal research to give you the resources needed to practise more efficiently, improve client services, and add more value. REQUEST A FREE TRIAL TODAY 1-844-717-4488 | thomsonreuters.ca/practicallawcanada Untitled-7 1 2018-10-23 2:41 PM

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