Weeks away from seeding, farmers face uncertainty from Chinese canola tariffs

Halyna Mihalik · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 19, 2025 8:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

Farmers connected the Canadian Prairies have canola on their minds arsenic they brace for a geopolitical storm.

On Thursday, China is expected to institute 100 per cent tariffs connected Canadian canola lipid and canola meal, on with 25 per cent tariffs connected different goods similar seafood and pork.

Saskatchewan has 5 canola crushing plants and produces much than 50 per cent of the country's canola.

As seeding season inches closer, farmers accidental they aren't definite if planting canola is worthy it this year.

"There's truthful overmuch astatine stake. We built a workplace based connected Canada's committedness to escaped commercialized and present that's each up successful the air," Margaret Rigetti, a canola husbandman adjacent Moose Jaw and the manager with the Saskatchewan Oil Seeds Development Commission, told CBC.

"We're weeks distant from going to the field. We person hundreds of thousands of dollars of effect and fertilizer connected the workplace waiting to spell into the ground."

WATCH | China hitting Canada with 100% tariff connected canola lipid and peas:

The Chinese tariffs connected canola travel successful effect to Canada's 100-per-cent tariffs connected Chinese-made electrical vehicles and a 25-per-cent levy connected Chinese aluminum and alloy products imposed connected Oct. 1, 2024.

The determination was meant to support inexpensive electrical cars from China astatine bay to turn and support Canada's nascent EV sector. 

Farmers reason that the car manufacture shouldn't beryllium much well-protected than the canola industry.

"I privation to cognize wherefore farmers are paying to support an manufacture that hardly exists," Rigetti said. "I privation to cognize wherefore the automotive manufacture doesn't person to vie portion we do."

The Chinese tariffs are scheduled to footwear successful conscionable a time aft the Saskatchewan fund is acceptable to beryllium introduced successful the provincial election.

Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe addressed farmers' concerns Tuesday astatine Canada's Farm Show, a commercialized amusement successful Regina. He urged Canada's caller Prime Minister Mark Carney to instrumentality enactment against China.

"He should usage this clip to scope retired to the president of China," Moe said. "This is the astir urgent and pressing contented to the Canadian system and to the Western Canadian economy. There volition beryllium jobs that volition beryllium lost."

Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump is besides threatening sweeping 25 per cent tariffs connected astir each Canadian exports, including canola and pork. Those tariffs could travel into play arsenic aboriginal arsenic adjacent month.