Annual Conference of Federal-Provincial-Territorial Ministers and Deputy Ministers of Agriculture

The federal and provincial governments are working in close partnership with Canada’s food and agriculture sector to implement a national branding strategy that will raise the profile of Canadian food and agriculture products and foster increased demand by international customers.

Despite the successes that Canada’s food and agriculture sector has achieved, research shows that Canadian products are not well-known. But the research also shows that international customers do know Canada.

Canada ’s international branding strategy is designed to capitalize on the positive impressions that people tend to have about Canada, and build on those images to broaden awareness of Canada and its products. By presenting a consistent message to customers, in every interaction, the organizations and companies that make up Canada’s food and agriculture sector can leverage the existing image of Canada into something stronger – widespread recognition of the excellence and diversity of Canadian products, and a corresponding increase in demand.

Through repeated exposure to consistent images and messages about Canadian products, awareness and recognition of the Canada Brand will grow and can help to positively influence buyers’ purchasing decisions.

The success of this branding strategy will depend upon collaboration among governments and industry. It is a voluntary initiative, in which individual organizations and companies determine how best to use the Canada Brand in their own business strategies.

Through sectoral National Value-Chain Roundtables, for example, many sub-sectors are taking action to benchmark themselves against competitors and are developing strategies aligned with the Canada Brand. Systems are also being strengthened in the areas of food safety and quality and environment through investments under the Agricultural Policy Framework. The branding initiative will help Canada to gain recognition for these systems and maximize the return on the investments being made.

An International Branding Working Group has provided a collaborative vehicle to ensure the development and roll-out of the strategy benefits fully from industry input.

For further information about this initiative can be found at www.brandcanada.agr.gc.ca.