TORONTO: As the demand for specific items heats up around the globe, it’s apparent that a rethinking of our processing, value adding and export aggression is long overdue. Considering the low value of the Canadian currency, this is an opportune time to push our products onto the world stage.
A nation dependent on the sale of commodities rather than consumer products is a nation of farmers mining for those that realize large margins by processing and further value adding. There is a huge difference between the price of a bushel of wheat and a loaf of bread or between the price of ground beef and a high-end burger offering at a bistro.
There are many fantastic global examples of value adding, and I often think of the Netherlands, which is one of the world’s largest exporters of roasted coffee. The nation doesn’t grow coffee but it imports the commodity and adds value. Canada does this with chocolate. Just as Brazil’s coffee is value added outside of the country, Canada’s commodities are often sent somewhere else for processing and value adding.
Canada is the world’s 11th-largest exporter of all goods, bringing the value per person to nearly $14,000. We are an agri-food trade-dependent nation yet the degree at which we add value to commodities across Canada varies by region. In Ontario and Quebec, more than 65 per cent of agricultural production is processed and sold as a value-added product, while the West struggles at 40 per cent or less. Quebec bakeries are using Quebec flour while Alberta wheat goes to China, Japan, Iran, South Korea and the U.S.
As for beef, having a market for live animals to the U.S. restricts the desire to value add in country. The safety valve of live exports may seem appropriate but any interruption in trade becomes absolutely devastating when added value is absent.
The food-processing industry, led by Ontario and Quebec, has a strong domestic presence when it comes to GDP. Food processing is the No. 1 manufacturing employer in Canada and the greatest manufacturing contributor to GDP. Getting there is one thing but staying there is another.
