An agreement has been signed by Governor Nixon that he says will further Missouri trade with Canada. The Governor led a state delegation to Canada this week in an effort to drum up trade and investment business for Missouri. The deal was secured with the province of Alberta and marks the third agreement with a Canadian province in the past 18 months.
The Governor says the agreement is important for Missouri farmers.
“The individual Missouri farmer understands that international markets are the key to keeping prices competitive,” says Nixon. “They understand that if we continue to have very open markets, the world market will decide the value of agriculture products.”
Nixon says farmers understand that staying competitive internationally is a two-way street.
“It leads to more foreign investment, more organizations in our state, and it leads to good prices for Missouri agriculture products that are shipped around the world,” says Nixon.
There are no specific dollar figures or goods announced as part of the agreement, but Nixon says the relationship building is an important part of the process. The Governor did say he’s hopeful for additional energy investments and he expects Missouri’s agriculture exports to grow with Canada.
Canada is Missouri’s leading export partner, with more than $4.7 billion in Missouri goods going to Canada last year. Missouri’s top exports to Canada in 2014 were in the areas of transportation equipment ($2.08 billion); chemicals ($657 million); machinery ($438 million); and food products ($392 million).