PORTLAND, MAINE – Members of the U.S. seafood industry are fearful that Canada's approval of a new trade deal with the European Union will cause big problems for the American lobster business, just as the catch is hitting historic highs.
The Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement Implementation Act, or CETA, cleared its final hurdle in the Parliament of Canada on Tuesday. The deal gets rid of tariffs on Canadian lobster exports to the 28-nation bloc, putting Canada at a huge advantage over the U.S.
The tariffs for fish and seafood average 11 percent, and the EU is the biggest importer of seafood in the world. EU countries imported more than $150 million in lobster from the U.S. last year, along with more than $190 million Canadian (US $140 million) from Canada.
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