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2002 October Report of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development
Case Study 4.3—Canada is vulnerable to trade disputes
On 31 October 2000, the U.S. Department of Agriculture imposed a prohibition on all imports of Prince Edward Island potatoes because of potato wart. Potato wart is primarily a soil-borne disease, and spores of the fungus can remain viable in contaminated soil for many years. Diseased potatoes are deformed and unmarketable.
Potato wart was eradicated from the United States in 1992 and according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, if the disease were to reappear it could be devastating to the U.S. potato industry because of potential losses in production and export markets.
Until October 2000, potato wart in Canada occurred only in Newfoundland. On 24 October 2000, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency confirmed the presence of potato wart in a single field in Prince Edward Island.
Though the U.S. ban on P.E.I. potatoes was lifted in April 2001, lost sales due to the U.S. ban were estimated at close to $30 million. Work hours of sorters, packers, and truckers were down 64 percent from the year before. The government of Prince Edward Island established a fund of up to $15 million to aid affected farmers.
The federal government responded by announcing up to $12.6 million to help farmers dispose of surplus potatoes that accumulated in the wake of the import restrictions. On top of the disposal funding, the federal government pledged emergency aid of $5.4 million to P.E.I. and an additional $1.5 million to help provide surplus potatoes to food banks across Canada. The Minister of Agriculture also noted that up to an additional $19 million in compensation would be provided through the Canadian Farm Income Program. Thus, total costs stemming from the six-month ban were as much as $83.5 million.
Although there may not be a causal link to events in P.E.I., in the first two months of the prohibition period potato exports to the U.S. fell 6 percent in New Brunswick, 22 percent in Ontario and 15 percent in Quebec.
The fungus that causes potato wart can lie dormant in soil for up to 40 years. In 2000, potato wart virus cost P.E.I. farmers millions in lost export sales.
Photo: Centro Internacional de la Papa