SPG Excited About China

SASKATOON - Apr 21/10 - SNS -- The recent elimination of China's restriction on naturally occurring selenium in field peas have combined with a high level trade mission from Canada to create greater opportunity in China, believes Saskatchewan Pulse Growers executive director Garth Patterson.

The April 12 to 16 mission to China included Patterson, Gordon Bacon, and Canada's Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz among others.

While in China, Minister Ritz also announced that China has agreed to remove import restrictions on Canadian pea imports containing naturally high levels of selenium.

"This provided an opportunity for Pulse Canada to sign an agreement with the Chinese Cereals and Oilseeds Association to develop pulse based food products," says Patterson.

For example, a large flour mill and bakery operation that provides 700,000 buns per day to Beijing restaurants is interested in combining pea four with wheat flour to increase the nutritional value of their buns.

Patterson believes this opens the door for more shipments of whole pea to China now that import restrictions on Canadian pea have been removed. This also means the utilization of Canadian pea and lentil as ingredients in Chinese food products should result in increased export opportunities for pulses.