Pedersen Leads Canadian Delegation At Tri-National Agriculture Accord

Manitoba Agriculture and Resource Development Minister Blaine Pedersen is leading the Canadian delegation at the 29th Annual Tri-National Agricultural Accord, which runs from October 20 to 22.

 

“Even with the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important that agricultural leaders continue open communications,” said Pedersen. “This year has reinforced the necessity of ensuring agriculture and food products can move between countries and get to consumers.”

 

The Tri-National Agricultural Accord represents a 29-year commitment among the senior state and provincial agricultural officials of Canada, the United States and Mexico to work together collaboratively on agricultural trade and development issues, as well as establish and strengthen business and trade relationships. At this year’s virtual gathering, delegates will discuss and make official statements on implementation of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and state and provincial responses to COVID-19.

 

“There are a lot of opportunities ahead of us, particularly as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement has come into force,” added Pedersen. “We will also be looking at ways to collaborate within North America on zoning agreements to minimize trade disruptions due to animal disease outbreaks, which has happened elsewhere in the world with African swine fever.”

 

The United States and Canada enjoy the largest bilateral trading relationship in the world. The United States is Manitoba’s number one trading partner, accounting for agri-food exports worth $2.7 billion in 2019. Manitoba’s top exports to the United States are canola oil, processed potatoes, canola meal and live swine. Mexico is Manitoba’s fourth-largest agri-food trading partner, with $325 million in agri-food exports in 2019. Manitoba’s top exports to Mexico are pork, canola seed and oil, wheat and processed potatoes.

 

Following this year’s virtual meeting, the 2021 accord will be held in Washington, D.C.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.