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NEWS RELEASES
CANADA AND AUSTRALIA REACH AGREEMENT ON SALMON
May 16, 2000 (3:55 p.m. EDT) No. 106
CANADA AND AUSTRALIA REACH AGREEMENT ON SALMON
International Trade Minister Pierre Pettigrew and Fisheries and Oceans Minister Herb
Dhaliwal announced today that Canada and Australia have concluded an agreement
resolving Canada's World Trade Organization (WTO) complaint against Australia's ban
on imports of Canadian fresh, chilled and frozen salmon.
"We are very pleased that our two countries have reached an agreement," said Minister
Pettigrew. "The result is important for Canadian salmon exporters and for our bilateral
relationship with Australia. It also demonstrates the importance of a rules-based
system."
"Canadian salmon has earned a reputation worldwide for its quality and
competitiveness," said Minister Dhaliwal. "Removal of Australia's 25-year-old import ban
is an important achievement. Canadian exporters of both wild and farmed salmon will
once again be able to supply a wide range of salmon products and species to that
market, which is valued at over $100 million."
On February 18, 2000, a WTO panel found that Australia's measures affecting imports
of Canadian salmon were inconsistent with Australia's WTO obligations. This was the
third time that the WTO had ruled against Australia's restrictions, following Canada's
original complaint in 1997. Since then, Canadian and Australian officials have been
negotiating the terms of a bilateral settlement. Australia will implement the terms of the
settlement on June 1, 2000.
The WTO will be notified of the bilateral settlement in early June after Australia
implements its provisions. Canada will also withdraw its request to retaliate against
Australia and terminate the domestic consultation process which began last May with
the publication, in the Canada Gazette Part I, of a notice of intention to impose a
100 percent surtax on certain products imported from Australia.
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A backgrounder is attached.
For further information, media representatives may contact:
Sylvie Bussières
Office of the Minister for International Trade
(613) 992-7332
Media Relations Office
Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
(613) 995-1874
Heather Bala
Office of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans
(613) 996-0076
This document is also available on the Department of Foreign Affairs and International
Trade's Internet site: http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca.
Backgrounder
WTO DISPUTE ON SALMON
History of the Dispute
- In 1975 Australia introduced a quarantine measure requiring salmon products
to be heat-treated for certain prescribed durations and temperatures prior to
importation into Australia.
- The result of Australia's measure was to prohibit the importation of fresh,
chilled and frozen salmon, effectively limiting importation of salmon to either
smoked or canned salmon.
- The reason given by Australia for prohibiting the importation of fresh, chilled
and frozen salmon was, allegedly, to protect Australia's salmon population
from the introduction of pathogens that could be responsible for various fish
diseases.
- Canada has maintained all along that trade in dead, eviscerated salmon for
human consumption does not present any risk of introducing fish diseases to
Australia's salmon population.
- Canada is not alone in maintaining this position. Evisceration of fish for human
consumption has become the internationally accepted practice of sanitary
protection against the establishment of diseases in a country's fish population.
- In 1994, Canada held GATT consultations to press Australia to remove the ban.
Following the consultations, Australia agreed to conduct an Import Risk
Assessment (IRA) of wild Pacific salmon imports.
- In May 1995, Australia issued a draft IRA, concluding that imports of wild,
headed, and eviscerated Pacific salmon from Canada and the United States
should be permitted. These findings were endorsed by two further reports
released by the Australian Bureau of Resource Sciences and the
Commonwealth Scientific Industrial Organization.
- The draft IRA encountered strong domestic opposition in Australia, mainly
from the Tasmanian salmon growers and some sportfishing groups. Australia
undertook to conduct a comprehensive review of the comments and to publish
a second version of the IRA.
- After many delays, Australia released a revised IRA for public comment in May
1996. Canada noted that the revised IRA backtracked from the conclusions of
the IRA of May 1995.
- In December 1996, Australia finalized the IRA and announced that the import
ban would be maintained on imports of Canadian fresh, chilled, and frozen
salmon.
- On April 10, 1997, a World Trade Organization (WTO) Dispute Settlement Panel
was established to hear Canada's complaint on the Australian ban.
- On June 12, 1998, the Panel found that Australia's ban on fresh, chilled and
frozen salmon from Canada was not based on a risk assessment; was
maintained without scientific evidence; and reflected an arbitrary and
unjustifiable distinction in levels of protection that resulted in discrimination or
a disguised restriction on trade, in violation of the WTO Agreement on the
Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement).
- Following an appeal by Australia, the WTO Appellate Body upheld the Panel
rulings on October 20, 1998.
- On November 6, 1998, the WTO Dispute Settlement Body adopted the WTO
Panel and Appellate Body reports.
- On February 22, 1999, a WTO arbitrator gave Australia until July 6, 1999, to
implement the WTO rulings.
- Australia failed to meet the WTO deadline and on July 15, 1999, Canada
submitted a request to the WTO Dispute Settlement Body to retaliate against
Australia by an amount of $45 million annually.
- On July 19, 1999, Australia announced new measures allowing limited access
for fresh, chilled and frozen salmon. Under the new measures, Canadian
salmon must be eviscerated, headed, gilled, washed, inspected, graded, and
come from a population for which there is a documented health surveillance
system. Additional certification is needed for Atlantic salmon. In addition, only
salmon products in "consumer-ready" form (defined by Australia as skinless
fillets of any size, skin-on fillets or steaks of less than 450g or products further
processed) can be released from quarantine.
- Canada reviewed Australia's new fish import policies and concluded they were
inconsistent with Australia's WTO obligations because they were, among other
things, unnecessarily trade restrictive and there was no scientific basis for
limiting products to "consumer-ready" form.
- A WTO Panel was therefore set up to determine whether Australia's new fish
import policies are consistent with Australia's WTO obligations.
- In parallel to the WTO process and in an effort to facilitate trade wherever
possible, technical discussions took place between Canada and Australia.
Canada was able to negotiate an interim fish health certificate allowing limited
access for wild-caught and farmed salmon subject to the restrictions outlined
in the July 19 announcement.
- On February 18, 2000, the Panel confirmed Canada's position that Australia's
July 19 import measures were not consistent with its WTO obligations.
- In particular, the Panel concluded that Australia's requirements that Canadian
salmon be in "consumer-ready" form before it can be released from quarantine
were not based on science and were more trade restrictive than necessary.
- Since the February 2000 panel ruling, Canada and Australia have been
negotiating the terms of a bilateral settlement.
- On May 16, 2000, Ministers Pettigrew and Dhaliwal announced that Canada and
Australia had concluded a settlement.
- The terms of the settlement provide meaningful access for Canadian salmon
exporters including removal of the consumer-ready requirements.
Next Steps
- Canada and Australia will be making a joint statement at the May 18, 2000,
meeting of the WTO Dispute Settlement Body.
- The WTO will be notified of the bilateral settlement in early June after Australia
implements the provisions of the settlement.
- On May 29, 1999, the Government of Canada published a Canada Gazette
notice announcing a 30-day consultation period on a proposed list of products
that might be subject to a 100 percent surtax in the event Canada retaliated
against Australia for non-compliance with the WTO rulings.
- Upon Australia's implementation of the settlement, Canada will terminate the
retaliation process. A notice will be published in the Canada Gazette to that
effect.
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