Notley calls on feds to stop 'naval-gazing' and end China's canola oil ban

Premier Rachel Notley is not sugar-coating any words after China blocked Canadian canola oil shipments from Richarson International Ltd.

The company is responsible for shipping 30% of Alberta’s canola, according to the Government of Alberta release, and is the specific target of the Chinese blockage, with their import permit being revoked by the country.

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China and Canada have been at odds since the arrest of Meng Wanzhou, the CFO of China’s Huawei Technologies, last December.

China has demanded that Wanzhou be released, while the US Justice Department has announced charges against the company and called for Wanzhou to be extradited to the US.

She is currently released on bail in Vancouver.

Following news of the import blockade, Notley issued a statement directed at Trudeau, calling on him to “fight back” to protect Alberta’s canola farmers.

“So, today, I’m calling on the Prime Minister to get back on the job and fight for our canola farmers and the jobs they support,” she said in the statement.

“We are calling on Ottawa to stop its navel-gazing about its internal controversies and fight back.”

Notley’s full statement can be found below:

“Alberta farmers contribute mightily to our economy and to Canada’s.

“Today, we learned that the Chinese government is barring a huge chunk of our canola shipments from entering their country. This is wrong and it’s unfair.

“Seventy per cent of agri-food exports to China from Alberta are canola-related products. And canola farming contributes billions to the Canadian economy.

“So, today, I’m calling on the prime minister to get back on the job and fight for our canola farmers and the jobs they support.

“We are calling on Ottawa to stop its navel-gazing about its internal controversies and fight back.

“Alberta farmers and Alberta workers stand to lose hundreds of millions of dollars and up to 3,000 jobs if this is not resolved.

“We need certainty – and now, more than ever, we need Ottawa to be in Canada’s corner.”