50,000-TONNE WHEAT SALE TO BRAZIL

Released on January 16, 1998

Premier Roy Romanow welcomed a 50,000-tonne wheat sale to Brazil,

signed today.



"Saskatchewan is already Canada's leading exporter to Brazil," Romanow

said. "This agreement by the Wheat Board builds on one of our key

strengths in this market and that's very good news for Saskatchewan

producers.



"It's also further evidence of how our Canadian grain producers are

globally competitive," he said. "Making that point and building on

it, is one of the key goals and contributions of Team Canada."



The sale signed today is for 50,000 tonnes of milling wheat, to be

supplied to J. Macedo Alimentos during 1998.



J. Macedo Alimentos holds a 12 per cent share of the Brazilian flour

milling market. The Board reports that Brazil consumes 6.5 million

tonnes of wheat per year. Canadian exports of milling wheat to Brazil

totalled 750,000 tonnes in 1996-97.



Another highlight of Team Canada's visit to Brazil:



Some of the opportunities open to Saskatchewan in Brazil were

underlined during a seminar yesterday that included Saskatchewan's

business delegation and many of the key Brazilian officials managing

the country's agriculture -- including Brazilian Agriculture Minister

Arlindo Porto Neto, senior Agriculture Department officials, the

President of Brazil's largest agricultural co-op, and officials from

the Brazilian Association of Food Industries.



Peter McCann, President of Ag-West Biotech Inc., said he was

impressed by the high level of officials he was able to meet and

hear, thanks to this Team Canada trip and by what they had to

say.



"These people seem to be very interested in working with us.

There are some remarkable opportunities for us here," he said.



The message was the same as the one delivered to Premier Romanow

by the President of Brazil yesterday. Brazil is focussed on

building up its agricultural industry and bilateral trade.

Finding ways to improve soil conditions, to improve the

capitalization of farms and producers, and to explore new crop

varieties are key priorities for this country.



McCann met with officials of the Brazilian equivalent of the

National Research Council to discuss some of these issues. The

Brazilians will be sending a delegation to the AIBC 98

biotechnology conference in Saskatoon later this year and are

interested in a return delegation from Saskatchewan to explore

opportunities for partnership in detail.



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For more information, contact:



Anna Arneson

Media Services

Regina

Phone: (306) 787-0850