On the Ground to Advance and Support Market Access for Canadian Canola

With 90% of canola and canola products destined for foreign markets, working to advance and support smooth and predictable trade is a top priority for the Canola Council of Canada (CCC). Since the start of 2026, the CCC has been in-market in the Indo-Pacific, the Middle East, the U.S. and Mexico with a view to further developing our trading relationships with key markets.

PAKISTAN

In January 2026, the CCC was in Pakistan to attend and speak at the Pakistan Oilseed Summit – an annual event for major importers and government officials. While in Karachi, the CCC engaged with the All Pakistan Solvent Extractors’ Association, large dairy operators and senior regulators. The CCC also participated in a ceremony at Port Karachi to welcome the first shipment of Canadian canola to Pakistan in three years. Since 2024, the CCC has worked closely with the Market Access Secretariat and the High Commission in Islamabad to register canola GM events under Pakistan’s new biosafety regime. Canola GM events were approved in October 2025, enabling the export of canola seed once again to this important market.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

The CCC met with some of the senior leadership at Al Ghurair, a major canola seed importer and crusher in Dubai, to strengthen the commercial relationship. Total exports to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) exceeded $285 million in 2025 and have the potential to grow further once the Canada-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement concludes, possibly as early as the end of 2026.

UNITED STATES

In February 2026, the CCC was in Washington, D.C. to participate in the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture’s (NASDA) Winter Policy Conference. The CCC was able to meet with state secretaries of agriculture, including from some top export markets for Canadian canola such as California, Iowa and Wisconsin. This provided an important opportunity to discuss the benefits of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico

Agreement (CUSMA) and how we can work together to further develop a robust North American industry. The CCC also had the opportunity to meet with the United States Department of Agriculture’s Chief of Staff and other officials to discuss areas of collaboration on trade and biofuels.

MEXICO

Mexico remains a top market for Canadian canola with exports totalling $1.1 billion in 2025. The CCC participated in a Team Canada Trade Mission to Mexico in February 2026 and had the opportunity to meet with Mexican officials and industry partners to further develop the bilateral trading relationship and speak to some technical topics and issues of interest to the bilateral canola trade relationship. The CCC will continue working closely with importers and other industry partners as we undertake the statutory joint review of CUSMA this year.

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