Trade was the focus of a meeting Thursday in Washington, D.C. between Canada's Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay and U.S. agriculture leaders.

The visit marked the first meeting with Macaulay and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, with discussions centred on working together and strengthening the bilateral trading relationship.

"We discussed our shared interests in biotechnology, ...regulatory cooperation, agriculture, science, and technology," MacAulay says. "Secretary Vilsack and I had a very productive relationship so far, and I'm looking forward to building on that."

MacAulay will also meet with U.S. companies and associations from the COOL Reform Coalition to reaffirm Canada's position on the importance of the approved country of origin labeling repeal on beef and pork.

During a telephone conference following meetings with U.S. agriculture leaders, MacAulay was asked about the potential for voluntary meat labeling in the U.S.

"We do not support the voluntary labeling, of course, and that subject did not come up in our discussions," says MacAulay. "I would have to say it was a very open and very positive discussion we had, and that subject did not come up at all."

Canada and the United States form the greatest bilateral trading relationship in the world with over $50 billion in bilateral trade in agriculture and food products.