SASKATOON — Agriculture Minister David Marit said China’s resumption of importing Canadian beef will immediately be felt by Saskatchewan’s cattle producers and livestock sector, restoring the trade relationship between the two countries after Prime Minister Mark Carney’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday.
China shut the door on Canadian livestock, particularly beef imports, in 2021 after the country’s cattle industry was hit by a case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, otherwise known as “mad cow disease,” a fatal and progressive neurological disease. The trade restrictions, along with tariff issues, nearly five years ago caused a significant loss of revenue for the province’s cattle producers.
Marit said that before the ban, beef exports to China between 2018 and 2019 were valued at roughly $200 million annually, a number that surprised him at the time. Today, that amount would be more than $300 million. The reopening of the Chinese market gives producers another critical buyer as Canada continues to explore other markets, which is needed to achieve price stability and long-term growth.
Marit said those at the forefront of Saskatchewan’s beef industry should feel the economic impact immediately following the Canada-China trade reset, as it restores access to a market of more than 1.4 billion people that will be worth hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue, not only for the province but for the entire country’s cattle industry.
“We saw it with peas; that is a good example. Once the announcement was made that [Canadian] yellow peas were going back into China, the price immediately jumped between 50 cents and a dollar per bushel,” Marit said. “That happened in the industry before there was even a call for yellow peas, because China wasn’t buying them. As soon as that tariff [issue] came off, there were calls [from China] to buy peas.
“That is how immediate it can happen. You’ll probably see the same thing reflected in the beef price as well. For [Canadian beef processor] JBS to send a shipment within a week or two after the agreement speaks volumes about China’s desire for our products. They want cuts that are different, and they still like some primary cuts too.”
He added that cooling Canada-China trade tensions help increase the value of Canadian beef, as federal and provincial officials continue to pursue diverse export markets. That diversification is one reason Canada now trades with more than 150 countries, part of an economic shift away from reliance on the U.S. after relations were strained by tariffs imposed under president Donald Trump.
“You always want more than one buyer for your product. That competition is reflected in the price, and that’s really the role of government — to help open markets and keep them open,” Marit said. “Agriculture, particularly beef, is the backbone of this province. We’ll continue to invest in research, innovation and policies that support the livestock sector’s growth. It’s about building a strong, competitive industry that can meet global demand while supporting Saskatchewan producers for the long term.”
Saskatchewan is the second-largest cow-calf-producing province in Canada, and the beef industry remains one of the cornerstones of the provincial economy, contributing billions of dollars annually and serving as a key driver of rural employment and investment. China is one of the world’s largest markets, with the potential to generate billions of dollars in revenue for the livestock sector.
