Article content
As Canada’s free-trade deal with Europe runs up against political opposition in France, French President Emmanuel Macron defended it Thursday at an appearance in Montreal.
“It is a very good agreement,” Macron told reporters in French, during a joint press conference with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “I am confident there will be a path forward for its definitive adoption in France.”
Article content
Macron made note of this incongruity in his remarks on Thursday.
“The reality is that CETA is a good agreement for the French agricultural sector,” Macron told reporters.
Some European critics of the agreement have stoked fears about the quality of Canadian meat exports entering the French market under CETA.
“CETA means beef will be hormone-treated meat will contain antibiotics for growth,” warned one prominent left-wing politician heading into June’s European parliamentary elections.
Dan LeRoy, a professor of agricultural economics at the University of Lethbridge said that the French debate over Canadian beef is “pure theatre.”
LeRoy noted that Canadian producers of beef and veal exported just eight tonnes of product to France in the first seven months of 2024, versus over 200,000 tonnes to the United States over the same period.
“Canada and France are not in the top dozen of each other’s (beef and veal) export markets,” LeRoy said.
National Post
rmohamed@postmedia.com
Get more deep-dive National Post political coverage and analysis in your inbox with the Political Hack newsletter, where Ottawa bureau chief Stuart Thomson and political analyst Tasha Kheiriddin get at what’s really going on behind the scenes on Parliament Hill every Wednesday and Friday, exclusively for subscribers. Sign up here.
Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here.
Share this article in your social network
