Canadian delegation, including Alberta reps, pitches trade at Iowa State Fair

A Canadian delegation that included representatives from Alberta, Quebec and federal officials joined Manitoba Pork leaders at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines to make the case for the Canada-U.S. trade relationship, as Washington threatens steep new tariffs on Canadian products. Ottawa has been negotiating in Washington to avoid 50 per cent duties scheduled to take effect Wednesday.

Manitoba Pork chair Rick Préjet and general manager Cam Dahl were among those meeting with local politicians, the Iowa Pork Producers Association, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Iowa's secretary of agriculture and the state farm bureau. Canada's Ambassador to the United States, Mark Wiseman, also attended, along with federal Agriculture Minister Heath MacDonald and Minneapolis Consul General Beth Richardson.

Manitoba ships more than three million young pigs to the U.S. annually, with about two million going directly to Iowa. Delegation members said the fair, known as a political hotspot, offered a chance for face-to-face diplomacy outside of formal Capitol Hill talks.

Trade figures cited at the fair show Canada is Iowa's largest customer, buying US$4.9 billion in exports in 2025, about 30 per cent of the state's total exports, while Iowa imports US$3.2 billion in Canadian goods, much of it agriculture and machinery. U.S. officials, including Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, also appeared at the fair defending the tariff policy, which farmers linked to Canada's dairy supply management system and the broader trade deficit.