Chinese, Indian tariffs take toll on pea prices

It all started with the Chinese tariffs on peas that were announced this past March. The tariff rate was placed at 100 per cent, which quickly stopped Chinese purchases of peas. According to Canadian Grain Commission data, Chinese imports were 513,500 tonnes last year, which made the country the second largest importer. India was the largest importer of Canadian peas last year at 880,200 tonnes, but that won’t be the case this year now that India has announced a tariff on yellow peas that began Nov 1. The tariff of 30 per cent will essentially price Canadian peas out of the Indian domestic market. This comes as no surprise because the Indian government has normally protected its pulse farmers with tariffs on peas, lentils and chickpeas. This is bad news for nearby cash pea prices, which have dropped by $15 to $20 per tonne since the announcement. The disruption of pea exports from Canada’s largest customers will likely result in slow pea exports for the remainder of the crop year. ...