An organization that represents pea, lentil and bean growers in Saskatchewan says it supports a new federal investment intended to spur diversification among its trading partners.
Canada’s agriculture minister announced Tuesday a $75-million investment over five years to expand export activities into new, non-traditional markets and support sectors most affected by trade barriers.
“This added investment will help our sector access new markets, strengthen interprovincial trade and build more resilience in the face of global challenges,” said Heath MacDonald, minister of agriculture and agri-food, at an unrelated policy breakfast in Ottawa.
The program builds on the existing AgriMarketing Program and adds funding for two new streams: national industry associations and small and medium-sized enterprises.
Organizations can apply for funding to expand export activities, with priority given to sectors most impacted by trade barriers, such as pulses and canola, according to a news release from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
“There are opportunities all over the world, but we can’t spread ourselves too thin. We have to target our markets and go after them,” said MacDonald.
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The federal government’s investment is being well-received by the national industry association representing pulse growers.
“Any investment in helping us diversify and helping us find new avenues, new uses, new ways to put more pulses on more plates around the world is something that we support,” said Jeff English, vice-president of public affairs at Pulse Canada.
In January, Canada struck a trade deal with China to remove the 100 per cent tariffs on Canadian yellow peas, effective March 1 through the end of the year.
China imposed this tariff in March 2025 in response to Canada’s previously imposed 100 per cent tariff on Chinese electric vehicles and a 25 per cent import tax on steel and aluminum.
But India’s 30 per cent tariff on Canadian yellow peas remains in place, something local pulse producer associations say is a reason the industry needs to diversify its trading partners.
“The more diversified we are, the less of an impact that will be, and we’ll have stronger prices for farmers at the end of the day,” said Carl Potts, executive director of Saskatchewan Pulse Growers.
Potts said his association is exploring strategies to tap into other markets worldwide, including the Indo-Pacific and Latin America regions.
Alongside diversifying its trading partners, the organization is also focused on increasing demand for other products in new markets, such as pet food and animal feed. This, according to Potts, was a strategy that helped bolster pea imports into China 20 years ago.
“At the time, they might have been importing maybe 200,000 tonnes a year, but we worked with local industry and consultants in the market to help develop more demand for peas,” said Potts.
“We’ve grown that into a market of over two million tonnes in some areas.”
Alongside finding new markets, the pulse grower associations say they are also continuing to advocate for strengthened relations with current trading partners and look forward to new opportunities to do so — from CUSMA renegotiations to a potential India trip by Prime Minister Mark Carney.
“As the government does its job in terms of building a stronger relationship with India, we’re doing things in lockstep as well,” said English.
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