This September, the Atlantic Ocean seemed a little narrower as EU and Canadian leaders signalled their intent to take the partnership to a new level. The EU is Canada’s second-largest trading partner, after the United States and ahead of China, accounting for 7.9% of its total trade in goods with the world in 2024.
Chemicals and pharmaceutical products are among the top goods traded between the EU and Canada, highlighting the importance of the health and life sciences sector in the bilateral relationship.
NXTin.Health reached out to Canadian government and EU officials to explore how the EU and Canada are partnering in health.
A resounding political YES
In her 2026 State of the Union Address on September 16, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that ”we see the world with the same eyes: from AI to climate change, from the Arctic to geopolitics. And we have stood together: on Ukraine, on defence, on raw materials and on supply chains.” She went on to make a significant proposal: ”I would like to work with you on opening the door for Canada to be the first associate member of the EU.”
Addressing the European Parliament in Strasbourg the following day, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney agreed that the response to the current geopolitical disruption should take on a new dimension.
Welcoming the Canadian Prime Minister, Parliament President Roberta Metsola said that “Europe and Canada share a simple understanding: that we are always stronger when we work together. Canadians stood with Europe in our darkest moments, and we will never forget their sacrifice. Today, we are looking to the future together, with huge potential to deepen our cooperation from defence and trade to energy, education and research.”
Mark Carney lauded Europe for bringing market power, research depth, advanced manufacturing and the ability to set standards that the world frequently adopts. Prime Minister Carney reminded us that Canada, meanwhile, brings energy at huge scale, one of the world’s largest endowments of critical minerals, and deep capabilities in space, AI and quantum technologies.
All these aspects are related to the future of health innovation.
Where our strengths differ, they complement. Where they overlap, they create scale. We should build on each other’s strengths – deliberately, systematically, and rapidly.
Mark Carney, Canada’s Prime Minister
Long-standing partnership in health
Hélène-Annie Lavoie, Spokesperson for Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada (Government of Canada), explained to NXTin.Health that Canada and the European Union have a long-standing and expanding partnership in health, grounded in the Canada–EU Strategic Partnership Agreement and supported by established relationships among public health, regulatory, research and emergency-preparedness organisations.
She highlighted that in September 2024, Canada and the EU launched a formal Health Policy Dialogue. Publicly identified priorities include antimicrobial resistance, health security and pandemic preparedness, climate-related health risks, cancer, mental health and other non-communicable diseases. The dialogue supports exchanges of scientific evidence, knowledge and best practices.
Cooperation on health-emergency preparedness has also deepened.
In June 2025, Health Emergency Readiness Canada and the European Commission’s Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority signed a five-year administrative arrangement covering medical countermeasures. This includes collaboration related to vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics, research and development, manufacturing, and supply-chain resilience.
The Public Health Agency of Canada and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control have worked together since signing a memorandum of understanding in 2007. In February 2026, they adopted their first joint operational action plan, identifying practical areas of cooperation such as surveillance, epidemic intelligence, risk assessment, workforce development, pandemic preparedness and response, Hélène-Annie Lavoie added.
Canada’s association with Horizon Europe provides another important platform for cooperation. As an associated country under Pillar 2, Canadian researchers, institutions and businesses can participate in multinational research and innovation projects on terms similar to those available to EU participants, including through the programme’s health cluster.
A spokesperson for Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada said in comments to NXTin.Health that Canada and the EU also have a mature regulatory relationship for pharmaceuticals. Cooperation between Health Canada and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) includes exchanges of regulatory information, participation in international regulatory forums and mutual recognition of good manufacturing practices under the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement. These arrangements support regulatory efficiency, product quality and the resilience of pharmaceutical supply chains while preserving each jurisdiction’s independent decision-making.
She stressed that Canada and the EU have benefited from a relationship focused on protecting health, improving preparedness for cross-border threats, supporting scientific and regulatory collaboration, and strengthening trusted health and life-sciences supply chains.
Stats
The EU and Canada represent a combined population of around 490 million people. Together they make up almost one fifth of global GDP and approximately 19% of global trade in goods and services. In 2025, EU-Canada trade in goods and services amounted to over €130 billion (Eurostat).
EU-Canada trade in goods amounted to almost €82 billion in 2025. The EU was Canada’s second trading partner, representing 8.7% of its trade. Canada was the EU’s 12th trading partner.
In 2025, EU-Canada trade in services amounted to €49 billion.
Between 2016 and 2025, trade in goods increased by over 76% and trade in services by around 90%. Trade in both goods and services grew by over 81% between 2016 and 2025.
Photos: Daina LE LARDIC, Denis LOMME, Philippe STIRNWEISS © European Union 2026 – Source : EP
