China’s Foreign Ministry denied a resumption in Canadian canola imports
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Regular Press Conference on April 3, 2020:
China News Service: According to reports, a Canadian government official said recently that China will allow some Canadian canola seed exports to continue, provided shipments contained less than 1% foreign material such as straw or chaff. There are also reports saying that China has agreed to resume imports of Canadian canola seeds. What is you comment?
Hua Chunying: Actually this is not a question for the foreign ministry. But noting online reports, we checked with the competent Chinese authorities and found them to be false information.
In March 2019, after repeated detection of hazardous organisms in Canadian canola seed imports, China suspended the export qualifications of two Canadian canola businesses whose quality problems were more serious. So far, the Chinese side has not received any investigation results or rectification measures by the Canadian side.
On the issue of impurity rate in Canadian canola seed imports, the relevant memorandum signed by the competent authorities of China and Canada has expired on March 31, 2020. In order to prevent the introduction of harmful organisms, the Chinese side has decided not to extend the above memorandum. Based on the existing quarantine requirements, it is decided that canola seeds from Canada with the amount of foreign material exceeding 1 per cent of the shipment will not be allowed to enter China. The Canadian side should take comprehensive quarantine measures to cut off at the source the spread of harmful organisms along with canola seed imports.
(source: official website of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
