Local businesses are looking for ways to adapt as tariffs and shifting trade policies continue to reshape industries on both sides of the border.
A Buy Canadian Policy forum hosted on Thursday by the Windsor Essex Chamber of Commerce and regional partners at the Ciociaro Club featured Senator Sandra Pupatello, who spoke with manufacturers, suppliers, and entrepreneurs about federal procurement opportunities tied to Ottawa’s Buy Canadian strategy.
The policy prioritizes Canadian suppliers and Canadian-made materials for federal infrastructure, defence, and housing projects valued at more than $25-million.
The impact is being felt locally for greenhouse growers like Mucci Farms in Kingsville, where the uncertainty surrounding tariffs has reinforced the importance of promoting Canadian products while also maintaining relationships with those in the U.S.
Guy Cameron, Senior Director of Product and Business Development at Mucci Farms, says despite trade tensions, American retailers are still looking north for reliable greenhouse-grown produce.
“We do tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, and strawberries, primarily our big crops. We have a strong relationship in the U.S., but they’re eager to get Canadian product, they’re eager to get greenhouse grown product. There’s a lot of interest now in the greenhouse growing industry because of some of the challenges in weather and climate impacts in the primary US or Mexican growing areas.”
He says the recent push to buy Canadian has increased consumer awareness at home.
“We saw a bump for sure because they were changing some of the merchandising; they were changing some of the signages you saw in the stores as well. Customers themselves were focused on the Canadian products,” says Cameron. “So, I think just awareness that our product was Canadian and greenhouse-grown. But we do a pretty good job identifying it, especially with the local customers here in Ontario with the Foodland Ontario logo. If we go beyond that, it’s a product of Canada.”
Cameron says the greenhouse industry is still learning to adapt in an unpredictable trade environment.
“Some things you just can’t prepare for. We have a fairly strong team that when we get some challenges we come together and figure out how to get past them. Our retailer base is really strong too. They’re in it for the right reasons. They want the product so we work together and collaborate on a lot of the challenges to get past them.”
Meanwhile, the automotive and manufacturing sector continues to look for new opportunities, such as the nuclear and defence industries.
Richard Janik with the Canadian Tooling and Machining Association says companies are now being forced to rethink where future business will come from.
“We have many challenges in machine, tool, die, and mold as far as our traditional industry breakdown, which has typically been automotive. I’m here to find out about opportunities within different industries, and also with the existing industry, what opportunities are going to be there for the machinists, the toolmakers, the automation builders.”
He says federal procurement changes tied to domestic production and defence manufacturing could open doors for companies willing to adapt.
“I think now with these programs and announcements of domiciling this work and involving typical machine, tool, die, and mold, and automation builders into this work, I think that has really opened up the doors to the companies taking this opportunity seriously.”
Janik says the changing tariff climate means manufacturers can no longer rely on traditional business models.
“I wouldn’t go as far as saying it was a gift horse because you still had to go out and find your opportunities, but now you have to explore opportunities greater than you did before because of the changing landscape and the economic factors that are prevailing.”
The Windsor Essex Chamber says the forum was designed to help small and medium-sized businesses better understand how they can compete for contracts tied to major federal projects under the Buy Canadian framework.