Canada Ban on US wine

[winesonoma]

Canada has threatened to ban US wine. http://www1.pressdemocrat.com/apps/pbcs.dl...8/1036/BUSINESS

[docsconz]

This is not insignificant. From the article:

Canada is the No. 2 importer of U.S. wine.

In 2004, imports totaled $123.8 million, representing 16 percent of all U.S. wine exports.

[canucklehead]

Not sure what the average Canadian wine drinker thinks - but the generally feeling I get from people who enjoy wines is that they would rather not see a ban.

However - the fact that things have gotten so far is a real demonstration on how frustrated Canada is with US trade policy. The NAFTA Board has ruled on numerous occassions that the US imposed tarriffs have no legal grounding yet the tarriffs continued to be collected by the US government and there is a move by a few US Senators to give the tarriffs collected to US Companies.

The quoted wine industry response is not helpful either. It continues to show 'so what' attitude to the possible Canadian sanctions. The lumber tarrifs are a crushing penalty to the lumber industry up here. It really is effecting alot of people's lives. Banning US wines one of few levers that Canada feels like it has.

Anyways - let's hope cooler heads prevail on all sides of this issue.

[jamiemaw]

The quoted wine industry response is not helpful either.  It continues to show 'so what' attitude to the possible Canadian sanctions.  The lumber tarrifs are a crushing penalty to the lumber industry up here.  It really is effecting alot of people's lives.  Banning US wines one of few levers that Canada feels like it has. 

Anyways - let's hope cooler heads prevail on all sides of this issue.

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Canada and the uS are the two largest trading partners in the world. Or at least they were.

The wine embargo is actually only one of many levers, I believe. And although relatively minor to Canada, it is likely to be invoked because it is highly visible and will atract media attention to the underlying NAFTA/soft wood issue and the $4.2 billion of missing revenues that have been seemingly hijacked.

Much more serious levers are the supply of water, energy and fossil fuels (Canada is now the US's largest supplier of oil) and the disruption of the propsed Alaska pipeline, which Canada will now undoubdetly delay if not outright cancel, but of course for reasons of 'environmental review'. According to the international adjudicating body, all this could be cured but for the stubborness of the US softwood industry and a few protectionaist senators. Needless to say, in rewarding inefficient US softwood producers, the countervail duty has also substantially raised the cost of US housing.

The failure of the US senate to lift the ban on Canadian beef this week did not help relations (promulgated by midwest senators this time, who over-ruled their own experts' reports, so that the appearance is of more protectionism, not protection).

But, ironically, it is President Bush who is apparently leaping to Canada's defense by raising the spectre of his first veto if the senate sends him a beef-ban bill.

Why? Because he sees the bigger picture of all the above-noted retaliatory measures that Canada could invoke. That, no doubt is why PM Paul Martin has been invited to Crawford--the formerly polite Canadian has a lot of tiger in his tank.

Quite a Conundrum.

PS--I realize that political discussion is not the point of these forums, however as these issues are absolutely linked I hope that this backround is helpful in order to more fully understand the proposed wine embargo.

Edited March 11, 2005 by jamiemaw (log)

[Mayhaw Man]

This is an interesting article about the current state of US wine exports and the amounts, in USD, that are shipped to the top three or four. The price is already bad for producers and a Canadian ban would not be, as pointed out above, a good thing for US producers.

[Coop]

As both a Canadian and a wine lover, I would like to say, count me out of this boycott. The truth is I don't drink very much US wine other then what a guest will bring to my house. I just don't think it's worth the money we pay for it here in BC.

Any talk of trying to win a trade war with the biggest bully in the schoolyard is just insane. It's also pretty Un-Canadian. We enjoy a status in this world because we are peace makers. To throw that aside because of a trade dispute would be very rash.

I agree that we have problems caused by beef and soft wood lumber but with-holding our power and water would only cause us a bigger problem. At the end of the day we don't scare anyone. The only solution is negotiation.

BTW speaking of Conundrum, it's no longer available at Hy's because of the screwtop closure the winery is using. The wine steward there think that it will be a dissapointment for the high rollers to watch them twist it open.

[Jeffy Boy]

Any talk of trying to win a trade war with the biggest bully in the schoolyard is just insane. It's also pretty Un-Canadian. We enjoy a status in this world because we are peace makers. To throw that aside because of a trade dispute would be very rash.

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The fact that the potential wine ban is being discussed in the media shows it's already having some effect. Awareness of the issue and of Canada's frustration may be the main goal.

Coop's right. We're lovers, not fighters. Except in hockey. But we just love the game so much.