OTTAWA — The Canadian government is calling on the European Union to ease restrictions on seal products as member states review trade regulations.
Ottawa says in a letter dated Aug. 6 to the European Commission’s vice-president that Canada has been given the opportunity to “provide input” on the seal trade while the union evaluates and fine tunes its rules.
In 2009 the European Union limited imports for Canadian seal products, citing the “pain, distress, fear and other forms of suffering” of seals because of the way in which they are killed and skinned.
Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier says in the letter that EU regulations have led to a drop in Canada’s access to global markets for seal products, with exports falling from $18 million in 2006 to $515,000 in 2022.
Lebouthillier says the seal trade has been an important source of identity and revenue for Indigenous and Inuit communities, especially women.
Canada is asking the EU to repeal its regulation on the seal trade and replace it with rules that offer access for “ethically and sustainably harvested products.”