China is rejecting Canadian canola exports.
A Chinese customs document dated March 1 cancelled Winnipeg-based agricultural handler Richardson International's registration that had allowed the Canadian agricultural company to export canola seeds to the country.
It’s the latest escalation in a diplomatic and trade dispute between the two countries that flared up after Canada detained a prominent executive of the Chinese technology company Huawei for possible extradition to the U.S. on espionage and conspiracy charges.
Cutting off canola shipments would be a major economic blow to Canada’s agriculture sector. In 2018, Canada exported more than $5 billion worth of canola, and almost half of it was shipped to China, according to the Canadian Canola Growers Association. Richardson International is among the largest canola shippers in all of Canada and the world.
Tensions between Canada and China were sparked last year when Canadian officials detained Meng Wanzhou, Vice-President of Chinese technology firm Huawei, at the request of U.S. tax authorities as she was boarding a flight in Vancouver. Meng, who is the daughter of Huawei's founder, was arrested on Dec. 1, 2018, while in transit through Vancouver to Mexico and South America. She is now involved in an extradition case and personal litigation against Canadian border officials, the RCMP and the Attorney General of Canada.
Federal officials in Ottawa said Wednesday that they "will work with China to resolve this issue (with canola shipments) as quickly as possible."
"We are closely monitoring the situation and any potential impact on Canada's agricultural trading relationship with China," Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau told reporters.
