Agricultural Law Netletter – June 7, 2018

HIGHLIGHTS

• The extent to which the Canadian Food Inspection Agency owes a duty to Canadian potato producers to negotiate on their behalf with foreign governments and agencies has recently been considered by the New Brunswick Court of Appeal. The Court upheld a trial decision which dismissed a $3.5 million damage claim made by two New Brunswick seed potato exporters who alleged that the CFIA had breached its duty of care to negotiate with the Government of Venezuela for the release of seed potatoes which had been delivered to an agency wholly owned by the Government of Venezuela, but which had been rejected due to alleged non-compliance with standards set out in Phytosanitary Certificates issued by the CFIA. The trial Judge had concluded that the CFIA owed a prima facie duty to negotiate on behalf of the potato producers based on a internal CFIA policy which set out CFIA's "responsibilities". The Court of Appeal also upheld the trial Judge's conclusion that this