Farmscape for April 7, 2006  (Episode 2108)

The Director of the University of Minnesota Swine Center is encouraging increased dialogue involving swine producers on both sides of the Canada US border to head off any potential new trade disputes.

It was one year ago that antidumping duties on live Canadian weanling pigs, feeder pigs and slaughter hogs imported into the US were quashed by a US International Trade Commission determination that ruled those imports were not causing harm to American producers.

The ruling ended a trade dispute that had been initiated in the spring of 2004 and marked the start of efforts to improve trade relations within the two industries.

University of Minnesota Associate Professor Dr. John Deen calls for more reciprocal participation in each other's meetings, more interaction among producers on the two sides of the border and more interaction among the research communities. 

Clip-Dr. John Deen-University of Minnesota

We do see a lot of north south movement of pigs, more south than north, but we don't see the farmer to farmer interaction, the understanding of what's happening in Minnesota is similar to what's happening in Manitoba.

I make two suggestions.

Number one is that, when Canadians look at meetings, look at going to meetings where their pigs are going to.

For instance coming down to meetings within Minnesota, within Iowa to talk about the common concerns.

Maybe they should go less to the Banff Conference and more to the Leman Conference (Allen D. Leman Swine Conference) as one example.

Most of the decisions of an industry such as ours is made based on personal contact and personal impressions.

As long as the Canadian farmer is remote to the American farmer there is some distrust but, if they get together, talk with each other, I think it will develop much more trust. 

Dr. Deen suggests, in some cases, you have to see where your pigs end up and your pork ends up and right now there's a lot of flow down into the United States.

For Farmscape.Ca, I'm Bruce Cochrane.

-Dr. Deen addressed Manitoba Pork Council's Annual Meeting earlier this week in Winnipeg.

       *Farmscape is a presentation of Sask Pork and Manitoba Pork Council