Consumption In Canada Research Articles

Socio-economic status and fruit juice consumption in Canada.

The role of socio-economic status (SES) in fruit juice and fruit drink consumption is not well understood in a Canadian context. This study examines the relationship between SES and Canadian fruit juice and fruit drink consumption. The Canadian Community Health Survey (2011-2012), a cross-sectional survey that employs multistage cluster sampling, provided relevant data for a sample of 103125 Canadians, aged 12 and older, living in the 10 provinces. Household income level decile, ranked at the health region level, was used as a surrogate measure of SES. Fruit juice and fruit drink consumption data were collected via self-report in telephone/in-person interviews. Multivariable gamma regression was used to model the relationship between SES and frequency of fruit juice and fruit drink consumption, adjusting for age, sex, diabetes status, daily fruit and vegetable consumption, education level, racial identity and physical activity. A negative relationship was found, with a decreasing daily rate of fruit juice and fruit drink consumption associated with increasing SES. In the adjusted model, Canadians in the lowest SES category consumed fruit juice and fruit drinks at an average daily rate 1.18 times (95% CI: 1.14-1.23) that of Canadians in the highest SES category. The negative association between health region-adjusted SES and fruit juice and fruit drink consumption highlights the potentially important role of socio-economic factors at a local level. Canadian policy that aims to lower fruit juice and fruit drink consumption, and thus sugar intake, should target financial avenues (such as making fruit juice less financially attractive by lowering the cost of whole fruit and vegetables) in addition to communicating health benefits.

Re-examining the economic determinants of alcohol consumption in Canada: controlling for the presence of common correlated effects

ABSTRACTAlcoholic beverages represent both an important source of revenue and a driver of expenditure for provincial governments in Canada. As a result, the pricing of alcoholic beverages has substantial public policy implications. In this context, we re-examine existing work estimating the demand for three classes of alcoholic beverage (beer, wine, and spirits) by controlling for common correlated effects. The results reveal that any conclusions regarding the government’s ability to influence alcohol consumption is sensitive to the assumption that the relationship between the demand for alcoholic beverages and economic variables is identical across provinces.

Rebound effect of efficiency improvement in passenger cars on gasoline consumption in Canada

The fossil fuel-driven transport sector has been one of the major contributors to CO2 emission across the world keeping it on the energy policy agenda for the past three decades. Canada ranks second in gasoline consumption among OECD countries and Canadian gasoline expenditure share has been increasing since the 1990s. Fuel efficiency policies aim to decrease gasoline consumption; however, the effect can be mitigated by changes in consumer behavior such as traveling more distances — a rebound effect. Thus, the effectiveness of fuel efficiency policy is dependent on the magnitude of the rebound effect. In this paper, we estimate the rebound effect for personal transportation in Canada using data from the household spending survey for the period 1997–2009. The model includes a system of expenditure share equations for gasoline, other energy goods, and non-energy goods specified by AIDS and QUAIDS models and estimated by the nonlinear SUR method. Our estimation results show a rather high average rebound effect of 82–88% but with significant heterogeneity across income groups, provinces, and gasoline prices. Specifically, the rebound effect ranges from 63 to 96% across income groups and provinces and increases with gasoline prices.

Folate and neural tube defects: The role of supplements and food fortification.

Periconceptional folic acid significantly reduces the risk of neural tube defects. It is difficult to achieve optimal levels of folate by diet alone, even with fortification of flour, especially because flour consumption in Canada is slightly decreasing. Intermittent concerns have been raised concerning possible deleterious effects of folate supplementation, including the masking of symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency and an association with cancer, especially colorectal cancer. Both concerns have been disproved. The Canadian Paediatric Society endorses the following steps to enhance folate intake in women of child-bearing age: encouraging the consumption of folate-rich foods such as leafy vegetables, increasing the level of folate food fortification, taking a supplement containing folate and B12, and providing free folate supplementation to disadvantaged women of child-bearing age. These recommendations are consistent with those of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada.

Taxing Consumption in Canada: Rates, Revenues, and Redistribution

The introduction of the VAT in Canada, initially in the form of the federal GST in 1991, did not signify a major change in the tax mix even after most provincial sales taxes also became VATs. Canadians do not pay much if any more in taxes on their consumption than they did 25 years ago. Although the GST and its provincial companions are not perfect, the evidence is that they create fewer barriers to investment and growth than the taxes they replaced so that Canadians appear as a whole to be better off than they were before setting off down the road to VAT. Nonetheless, perhaps in part because the VAT in Canada unlike in other countries is generally quoted separately (like retail sales taxes in the US) and hence highly visible, it continues to be politically unpopular and considered undesirably regressive. The major contribution of this paper is to examine in some detail and with some new evidence the incidence of Canada’s sales and excise taxes, a question that has received surprisingly little analysis. Because the share of total consumption taxes coming from sales rather than excise taxes has increased, these taxes are now less regressive than they were before the move to VAT, regardless of how incidence is measured. More importantly, there are solid arguments for using consumption than income as a basis for evaluating the progressivity of consumption taxes, and on this measure the GST and its companion taxes appear to be mildly progressive. However because the remaining excises are quite regressive even on this basis, on the whole the sales and excise system remains mildly regressive.

Characterization of VCC-1, a Novel Ambler Class A Carbapenemase from Vibrio cholerae Isolated from Imported Retail Shrimp Sold in Canada.

One of the core goals of the Canadian Integrated Program for Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance (CIPARS) is to monitor major meat commodities for antimicrobial resistance. Targeted studies with methodologies based on core surveillance protocols are used to examine other foods, e.g., seafood, for antimicrobial resistance to detect resistances of concern to public health. Here we report the discovery of a novel Ambler class A carbapenemase that was identified in a nontoxigenic strain of Vibrio cholerae (N14-02106) isolated from shrimp that was sold for human consumption in Canada. V. cholerae N14-02106 was resistant to penicillins, carbapenems, and monobactam antibiotics; however, PCR did not detect common β-lactamases. Bioinformatic analysis of the whole-genome sequence of V. cholerae N14-02106 revealed on the large chromosome a novel carbapenemase (referred to here as VCC-1, for Vibrio cholerae carbapenemase 1) with sequence similarity to class A enzymes. Two copies of blaVCC-1 separated and flanked by ISVch9 (i.e., 3 copies of ISVch9) were found in an acquired 8.5-kb region inserted into a VrgG family protein gene. Cloned blaVCC-1 conferred a β-lactam resistance profile similar to that in V. cholerae N14-02106 when it was transformed into a susceptible laboratory strain of Escherichia coli. Purified VCC-1 was found to hydrolyze penicillins, 1st-generation cephalosporins, aztreonam, and carbapenems, whereas 2nd- and 3rd-generation cephalosporins were poor substrates. Using nitrocefin as a reporter substrate, VCC-1 was moderately inhibited by clavulanic acid and tazobactam but not EDTA. In this report, we present the discovery of a novel class A carbapenemase from the food supply.

A Panel Data Analysis of the Demand for Electricity in Canada

The article uses panel data from the Statistics Canada (1983–2010) to examine the determinants of electricity consumption in Canada. The estimations from the Fully Modified Ordinary Least square (OLS) and Dynamic OLS models suggest that per capita real Gross Domestic Production (GDP) has a significant positive while electricity price has a negative, but insignificant impact on per capita electricity consumption. The study uses Panel Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) to examine long and short run causality among the variables. The Panel VECM results suggest that there is a long run causal relationship among electricity consumption, real GDP and electricity price. The Panel VECM results further suggest that unidirectional short run causality runs from per capita real GDP to per capita electricity consumption.

Neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage and fruit and vegetable consumption: a seven countries comparison.

BackgroundLow fruit and vegetable consumption is a risk factor for poor health. Studies have shown consumption varies across neighbourhoods, with lower intakes in disadvantaged neighbourhoods. However, findings are inconsistent, suggesting that socio-spatial inequities in diet could be context-specific, highlighting a need for international comparisons across contexts.This study examined variations in fruit and vegetable consumption among adults from neighbourhoods of varying socioeconomic status (SES) across seven countries (Australia, Canada, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Scotland, US).MethodsData from seven existing studies, identified through literature searches and knowledge of co-authors, which collected measures of both neighbourhood-level SES and fruit and vegetable consumption were used. Logistic regression was used to examine associations between neighbourhood-level SES and binary fruit and vegetable consumption separately, adjusting for neighbourhood clustering and age, gender and education. As much as possible, variables were treated in a consistent manner in the analysis for each study to allow the identification of patterns of association within study and to examine differences in the associations across studies.ResultsAdjusted analyses showed evidence of an association between neighbourhood-level SES and fruit consumption in Canada, New Zealand and Scotland, with increased odds of greater fruit intake in higher SES neighbourhoods. In Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Portugal, those residing in higher SES neighbourhoods had increased odds of greater vegetable intake. The other studies showed no evidence of a difference by neighbourhood-level SES.ConclusionsAcknowledging discrepancies across studies in terms of sampling, measures, and definitions of neighbourhoods, this opportunistic study, which treated data in a consistent manner, suggests that associations between diet and neighbourhood-level socioeconomic status vary across countries. Neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage may differentially impact on access to resources in which produce is available in different countries. Neighbourhood environments have the potential to influence behaviour and further research is required to examine the context in which these associations arise.

Producing Reality: Television Formats and Reality TV in the Canadian Context

This article explores the rise of formatted reality production and consumption in Canada, paying particular attention to their impact on global and local industry and culture. Attention is paid to how cultural production in the Canadian television industry is implicated in contemporary global and national political economic contexts. The study utilizes a political economic framework in order to situate industry reports, conferences/trade shows, ratings data and interviews with industry members. The overall objective is to better understand the Canadian landscape of original reality television, Canadian format adaptations, and imported formatted American format adaptations. At issue are funding mechanisms, technology, policy, and culture.

Economic benefits of the Mediterranean-style diet consumption in Canada and the United States

BackgroundThe Mediterranean-style diet (MedDiet) is an established healthy-eating behavior that has consistently been shown to favorably impact cardiovascular health, thus likely improving quality of life and reducing costs associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD). Data on the economic benefits of MedDiet intakes are, however, scarce.ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to estimate the annual healthcare and societal cost savings that would accrue to the Canadian and American public, independently, as a result of a reduction in the incidence of CVD following adherence to a MedDiet.DesignA variation in cost-of-illness analysis entailing three stages of estimations was developed to 1) identify the proportion of individuals who are likely to adopt a MedDiet in North America, 2) assess the impact of the MedDiet intake on CVD incidence reduction, and 3) impute the potential savings in costs associated with healthcare and productivity following the estimated CVD reduction. To account for the uncertainty factor, a sensitivity analysis of four scenarios, including ideal, optimistic, pessimistic, and very-pessimistic assumptions, was implemented within each of these stages.ResultsSignificant improvements in CVD-related costs were evident with varying MedDiet adoption and CVD reduction rates. Specifically, CAD $41.9 million to 2.5 billion in Canada and US $1.0–62.8 billion in the United States were estimated to accrue as total annual savings in economic costs, given the ‘very-pessimistic’ through ‘ideal’ scenarios.ConclusionsCloser adherence to dietary behaviors that are consistent with the principles of the MedDiet is expected to contribute to a reduction in the monetary burdens of CVD in Canada, the United States, and possibly other parts of the world.

Modeling of an Indirect Solar Assisted Heat Pump System for a High Performance Residential House

The combination of solar thermal and heat pump systems as a single solar assisted heat pump (SAHP) system can significantly reduce residential energy consumption in Canada. As a part of Team Ontario's efforts to develop a high performance house for the U.S. Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon 2013 Competition, an integrated mechanical system (IMS) consisting of a SAHP was investigated. The system was designed to provide domestic hot water (DHW), space-heating, space-cooling, and dehumidification. The system included a cold and a hot thermal storage tanks and a heat pump to move energy from the low temperature reservoir to the hot reservoir. Solar thermal collectors supplied heat to the cold storage and operated at a higher efficiency due to the heat pump reducing the temperature of the collector working fluid. The combination of the heat pump and solar thermal collectors allows more heat to be harvested at a lower temperature, and then boosted to a suitable temperature for domestic use via the heat pump. The IMS and the building's energy loads were modeled using the TRNSYS simulation software. A parametric study was conducted to optimize the control, sizing, and configuration of the system. The simulation results suggested that the investigated system can achieve a free energy ratio (FER) of about 0.583 for the high performance house designed for the Ottawa climate.

Enough of that already: sufficiency-based challenges to high-carbon consumption in Canada

While dominant responses to climate change aim to decouple economic growth and emissions, a sufficiency approach challenges infinitely growing production and consumption. Sufficiency can target different levels. At the macro level, it questions endless economic growth, but it has advanced further at the micro level, where it challenges specific commodities, practices, or sectors. Relatively easy targets for politicians and others wanting to signal ecological concern include plastic bags and bottled water. The idea of ‘less’ has also progressed, paradoxically, when it contributes to a broader growth agenda. Examples in Canada include efforts to reduce food miles, which can expand the local agricultural economy, and state promotion of reduced electricity consumption to ensure power-system reliability, upon which overall economic growth depends. These cases suggest that sufficiency may, for the foreseeable future, find its best prospects in limited circumstances where it can be linked to the legitimation or, ironically, the economic imperatives of states.

High correlations between levels of consumption and mortality related to strong prescription opioid analgesics in British Columbia and Ontario, 2005 – 2009

Prescription opioid analgesic (POA)-related burden of disease - including mortality - is high and constitutes a major public health problem in the US and Canada. Associations between the overall levels of POA consumption and key related morbidity indicators in the population have been demonstrated. We examined potential correlations between levels of consumption of four commonly used POAs and related mortality in British Columbia (BC) and Ontario. We investigated the correlation between annual population standardized rates of fentanyl, hydromorphone, morphine and oxycodone-related mortality (based on provincial coroners' data) and the annual Defined Daily Doses per 1000 population/day for each of the drugs dispensed (based on representative retail pharmacy sales data) in the two provinces, 2005-2009. Death rates increased for three (Ontario) and two (BC) of the four POA drugs; the rate of deaths for each POA drug was consistently higher in the jurisdiction with higher use levels. For each drug, strong correlations (range 0.83 to 0.97; p < 0.003) were found between POA use and mortality levels; consistent within-province correlations were found for two drugs (hydromorphone and oxycodone). Our findings of strong correlations between select POA use and mortality levels reflect similar evidence from elsewhere on correlations between POA consumption and morbidity or mortality indicators. In the context of high and increasing levels of POA consumption in Canada, efforts to reduce POA-related mortality may require a comprehensively revised approach towards more appropriate and safer prescribing to reduce POA use volumes together with more effective monitoring of POA medications.

Foodborne outbreaks in Canada linked to produce: 2001 through 2009.

Foodborne disease outbreaks associated with fresh fruits and vegetables have been increasing in occurrence worldwide. Canada has one of the highest per capita consumption rates of fresh fruits and vegetables in the world. In this article, we review the foodborne disease outbreaks linked to produce consumption in Canada from 2001 through 2009. The 27 produce-related outbreaks included an estimated 1,549 cases of illness. Bacterial infection outbreaks represented 66% of the total. Among these, Salmonella was the most frequent agent (50% of outbreaks) followed by Escherichia coli (33%) and Shigella (17%). Cyclospora cayetanensis was the only parasite detected and was associated with seven outbreaks. Among the foodborne viruses, only hepatitis A was implicated in two outbreaks. The food vehicles most commonly implicated in outbreaks were leafy greens and herbs (26% of outbreaks), followed by seed sprouts (11%). Contamination sources and issues related to the future control of fresh produce-related foodborne disease outbreaks also are discussed.

From exploitation of marine resources and management of bushes in the terminal Mesolithic to the beginning of the Neolithic at the German Baltic coast

Growing energy crops such as perennial grasses and trees on marginal land offers the possibility of reducing the competition with food crops for land resources. Identifying the productivity, economic feasibility and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions impact is the premise of our study on using marginal land for bioenergy production in Canada. The area of marginal land available was identified by intersecting national maps of land suitability and land cover. The costs and potential returns of growing energy crops on marginal land were then analyzed, and the GHG emissions were evaluated using a GHG emissions model. The results indicated that approximately 9.48 million ha of potentially useable marginal land was available in Canada. The land cover of the available marginal land consists of grassland (68.2%) and shrubland (31.8%). If the available marginal land was completely utilized, the biomass production would be 23.7 million tonnes of switchgrass or 51.2 million tonnes of hybrid poplar. The production of biofuel from these biomass sources would be 5.69 and 11.26 billion L, equivalent to 14.0% and 27.7% of the total transportation gasoline consumption in Canada in 2014, for switchgrass and poplar, respectively. On the marginal land, the average production cost was estimated to be approximately 68.2 CAD $/t (173.8 CAD $/ha) for switchgrass, and 26.2 CAD $/t (140.2 CAD $/ha) for coppiced hybrid poplar. The production of biomass showed a positive net return on marginal land in Ontario (eastern Canada), with a biomass price of 99 CAD $/t and 35 CAD $/t for switchgrass and coppiced hybrid poplar, respectively. When the biomass price is less than 101 CAD $/t, growing switchgrass in the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan, where 69% of Canada’s marginal land is located, was not considered economically attractive. By replacing fossil fuel, the maximum potential switchgrass production on marginal land would reduce GHG emissions by 29.49 million t CO2-eq/yr. However, when considering the economic aspect of production, the potential reduction of 6.1 million tonnes CO2/yr from planting poplar is more viable. Further analysis of the broader economic value of the current use of marginal land (primarily livestock grazing) and the impacts on biodiversity, soil quality, and water resources is needed to completely assess the practicality of a widespread increase in biomass production for bioenergy on Canada’s marginal land.

International trade related food miles – The case of Canada

At the beginning of the 21st century imports of agricultural and food commodities have become a major part of many nations’ food baskets. Indeed the global food system has several merits for nations, businesses and individual consumers’ well-being. However, as increasing evidence suggests that we are approaching an era of climate change and scarcity of cheap energy sources the sustainability of that system must be examined. One part of any food commodity chain is its ‘food miles’ – the distance the commodity travels from point of production to point of consumption, the required energy and resulting emissions. This paper presents a 1 year ‘snapshot’ of Canada’s total import related food miles. It presents an analysis of the distance imported foods traveled from around the world to major points of consumption in Canada and documents the equivalent carbon dioxide emissions related to those imports. It presents both a macro scale picture of the equivalent emissions related to transportation of imported food and a micro scale picture which focuses on specific commodities consumed in various parts of the country. It then discusses policy implications for food sustainability. Overall the research highlights that about 30% of the agricultural and food commodities consumed in Canada are imported, resulting in ‘food miles’ of over 61billiontonneskm, leading to annual emissions of 3.3 million metric tonnes of CO2. Of the various agriculture and food commodities studied, fruits and vegetables had the highest food miles related emissions.

Mortality and potential years of life lost attributable to alcohol consumption in Canada in 2005.

BackgroundAlcohol is a substantial risk factor for mortality according to the recent 2010 World Health Assembly strategy to reduce the harmful use of alcohol which outlined the need to characterize and monitor this burden. Accordingly, using new methodology we estimated 1) the number of deaths caused and prevented by alcohol consumption, and 2) the potential years of life lost (PYLLs) attributable to alcohol consumption in Canada in 2005.MethodsMortality attributable to alcohol consumption was estimated by calculating Alcohol-Attributable Fractions (AAFs) (defined as the proportion of mortality that would be eliminated if the exposure was eliminated) using data from various sources. Indicators for alcohol consumption were obtained from the Canadian Alcohol and Drug Use Monitoring Survey 2008 and corrected for adult per capita recorded and unrecorded alcohol consumption. Risk relations were taken from the Comparative Risk Assessment within the current Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study. Due to concerns about the reliability of information specifying causes of death for people aged 65 or older, our analysis was limited to individuals aged 0 to 64 years. Calculation of the 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the AAFs was performed using Monte Carlo random sampling. Information on mortality was obtained from Statistics Canada. A sensitivity analysis was performed comparing the mortality results obtained using our study methods to results obtained using previous methodologies.ResultsIn 2005, 3,970 (95% CI: 810 to 7,170) deaths (4,390 caused and 420 prevented) and 134,555 (95% CI: 36,690 to 236,376) PYLLs were attributable to alcohol consumption for individuals aged 0 to 64 years. These figures represent 7.7% (95% CI: 1.6% to 13.9%) of all deaths and 8.0% (95% CI: 2.2% to 14.1%) of all PYLLs for individuals aged 0 to 64 years. The sensitivity analysis showed that the number of deaths as measured by this new methodology is greater than that if mortality was estimated using previous methodologies.ConclusionsThe mortality burden attributable to alcohol consumption for Canada is large, unnecessary, and could be substantially reduced in a short period of time if effective public health policies were implemented. A monitoring system on alcohol consumption is imperative and would greatly assist in planning and evaluating future Canadian public health policies related to alcohol consumption.

A hybrid fuzzy mathematical programming-design of experiment framework for improvement of energy consumption estimation with small data sets and uncertainty: The cases of USA, Canada, Singapore, Pakistan and Iran

Utilization of small data sets for energy consumption forecasting is a major problem because it could create large noise. This study presents a hybrid framework for improvement of energy consumption estimation with small data sets. The framework is based on fuzzy regression, conventional regression and design of experiment (DOE). The hybrid framework uses analysis of variance (ANOVA) and minimum absolute percentage error (MAPE) to select between fuzzy and conventional regressions. The significance of the proposed framework is three fold. First, it is flexible and identifies the best model based on the results of ANOVA and MAPE. Second, the framework may identify conventional regression as the best model for future energy consumption forecasting because of its dynamic structure, whereas in the case of uncertainty and ambiguity, previous studies assume that fuzzy regression provides better solutions and estimation. Third, it is ideal candidate for short data sets. To show the applicability of the hybrid framework, the data for energy consumption in Canada, United States, Singapore, Pakistan and Iran from 1995 to 2005 are considered and tested. This is the first study which introduces a hybrid fuzzy regression-design of experiment for improvement of energy consumption estimation and forecasting with relatively small data sets.

Electric Utility Demand Side Management in Canada

Government, utility, and private subsidies for energy efficiency play a prominent role in current efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, yet the effectiveness of this policy approach is in dispute. One opportunity for empirical analysis is provided by the past energy efficiency subsidies, called demand-side management programs, offered by electric utilities in North America over several decades. Between 1990 and 2005, most electric utilities in Canada administered such programs, with total spending of $2.9 billion (CDN$2005). This paper uses the significant inter-annual variation in demand side management spending during this period to econometrically estimate the effectiveness of these subsidies. The resulting estimates indicate that these programs have not had a substantial impact on overall electricity consumption in Canada. doi: 10.5547/ISSN0195-6574-EJ-Vol32-No4-5

The Impact of Trade Barriers on Mandated Biofuel Consumption in Canada

A customized version of the deterministic Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) modeling system was used to assess the impacts of two alternative scenarios: (1) an increase in Canadian ethanol demand to 10% of domestic liquid fuel consumption by 2011 met through increased ethanol imports, and (2) the same increase in Canadian ethanol demand met only through increased domestic supply. The results reveal import barriers injure Canadian consumers by limiting their access to supplies offered for sale at lower prices by more efficient producers, particularly those located in subtropical regions. With freer trade, the domestic ethanol price would fall while the world price would rise due to the higher demand for ethanol in Canada. The results also show that import restrictions directly undermine the effectiveness and increase the costliness of a higher consumption mandate in Canada. The relatively less expensive ethanol is for the final consumer, the more likely they will use it as fuel over available alternatives. The implication is that restricting imports of ethanol is counterproductive to the policy objective of increasing domestic ethanol consumption. Nous avons utilisé une version adaptée du système de modélisation déterministe du Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) pour évaluer les répercussions de deux scénarios possibles : 1. une hausse de la demande canadienne d’éthanol équivalant à dix pour cent de la consommation intérieure de combustible liquide d’ici 2011 grâce à l’augmentation des importations d’éthanol; 2. la même hausse grâce, cette fois, à l’augmentation des approvisionnements intérieurs seulement. Nos résultats ont indiqué que les obstacles à l’importation lèsent les consommateurs canadiens en limitant leur accès à des approvisionnements offerts à faibles prix par des producteurs plus efficaces, en particulier ceux des régions subtropicales. En présence d’une libéralisation accrue des échanges, le prix intérieur de l’éthanol reculerait tandis que le prix mondial augmenterait en raison de l’accroissement de la demande d’éthanol au Canada. Nos résultats ont également indiqué que les restrictions à l’importation réduisent directement l’efficacité et augmentent la cherté du mandat visant à stimuler la consommation d’éthanol au Canada. Plus le prix de l’éthanol sera abordable pour le consommateur final, plus ce dernier sera enclin à l’utiliser comme combustible par rapport aux autres sources disponibles. Imposer des restrictions à l’importation d’éthanol fait plus de tort que de bien à l’objectif de la politique qui vise à accroître la consommation intérieure d’éthanol.