The Impact of the U.S. Bio-Terrorism Act upon Canadian Exporters of Food Products to the United States: A Firm-Level Analysis

Abstract

This article examines the impact of the 2002 U.S. Bio-terrorism Act (BTA) upon Canadian exporters of food products to the United States. A major goal of the BTA is to secure U.S. ports of entry against imports that might threaten the health or safety of U.S. citizens. Although this is a respectable goal, data from a sample of 144 Canadian exporters suggest that the BTA represents a non-tariff barrier to Canada-U.S. trade. Current regulatory procedures have disrupted cross-border supply chains in significant ways. These disruptions have damaged the Canada-U.S. commercial relationship by imposing extra shipment and distribution costs upon Canadian exporters. These delays have had a serious impact upon small-to-medium sized firms (SMFs). The article concludes with a brief discussion of possible remedial actions that might be taken by Canadian exporters.

This article builds upon a 2005 pilot study that was conducted by the Canadian Embassy, Washington, D.C. The author was given access to the Embassy's survey instrument, sampling frame, and preliminary results. I wish to thank the Canadian Embassy and the Canadian Government for both financial and technical assistance with this expanded inquiry.

Notes

¹Perishability was measured across a 7-point scale, ranging from 1 (non-perishable) to 7 (highly perishable). Table II shows a perishable versus non-perishable dichotomy for descriptive purposes, but Table VII uses the complete index.

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