Staples Theory @ 50: Re-Reading Staples Theory in Light of Current Trade and Development Theory

Abstract

Staples Theory, as developed by renowned Canadian political scientists Harold Innis and W. A. Mackintosh, sought to explain the distinctive nature of the political economy of Canada’s various regions as having been shaped by the nature of the major resource exports of those regions – fish, timber, grains, etc. In his classic 1963 article, Melville Watkins restated the theory in pure economic theory terms. In this comment, I restate the theory in an updated context, taking into account the many developments in trade and development theory in the intervening half century and discuss its continuing relevance today. As a device I imagine the development of a brand new staple, and think through its implications in light of Watkins’ analysis but in terms of modern trade and development theory.