Ms. Manon Lacroix reports

ROGERS SUGAR INC. SUPPORTS THE TRANS PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP

Rogers Sugar Inc. supports the efforts of Canada and other countries to reach a Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement. Full details of the agreement are not available at this time, but the Canadian Sugar Institute has confirmed that the United States granted Canada a combined 19,200 metric tonnes of new sugar access. The new Canadian access consists of two separate quotas: one for 9,600 metric tonnes of Canadian-origin refined sugar and a second for 9,600 metric tonnes of sugar-containing products (SCP).

Lantic Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the corporation, will benefit from the new access of Canadian-origin refined sugar to the U.S. as Lantic is the sole producer of such sugar, through its Taber factory. The additional SCP access to the U.S. was granted to Canada, which will allow Lantic to participate in the shared quota. "We welcome the opportunity to increase export access to countries where trade barriers are significant with regards to refined sugar and sugar-containing products," said John Holliday, president and chief executive officer of Lantic. "The TPP agreement is positive for the Canadian sugar industry, the agri-food industry, sugar beet processing in Alberta and our employees. As more details are made available, we will analyze the broader trade opportunities and develop strategies to maximize TPP to its full potential."

The TPP agreement will have to be ratified by all parties and may take a number of months to be finalized. The TPP agreement will come into effect two years after the ratification process is completed. As a result, the corporation does not expect any financial windfall from the TPP in fiscal 2016.