Here’s what you need to know: The Trans-Pacific Partnership deal broken down

Who’s in: The Trans-Pacific Partnership deal includes Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Brunei, Japan, Malaysia, Chile, Mexico, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the United States. Together, these countries represent 40 per cent of the world’s gross domestic product.

What is the deal?: It’s a free-trade agreement that when combined with other existing free-trade pacts, will allow Canada to trade with Japan and several other large advanced Asian economies almost completely tariff-free.

When does it come into effect?: After each member nation’s legislature ratifies it into law, the deal will come into effect, with substantial phase-in periods for certain industries that may need time to adjust.

Why did governments wanted to sign this deal?: Started by New Zealand in 2005, the deal is seen as a means to expand trade in the Pacific Rim region outside of China. Some observers say it is an attempt by the United States to strengthen its ties to Pacific Rim states and counteract the rising influence of China, the world’s second largest economy.

How will certain industries be impacted?: Like any other trade deal Canada has signed, it will benefit some sectors of the economy, and negatively impact others. While the deal has not yet been made public, select details released suggest it will expose the Canadian automotive industry and agriculture sector to increased competition, while generating new markets for nearly all of Canada’s exported goods.

Cars: The deal will completely eliminate Canada’s 6.1 per cent import duty on cars imported from countries such as Japan five years after it comes into effect. Though many Japanese automakers operate local assembly plants in Canada and across North America, they still export vehicles to the continent directly from Japan.

Using the 2014 average Canadian new car sale price of $33,000, the elimination of the tariff could make certain cars more than $2,000 cheaper for consumers.

But if you work in Canada’s substantial auto parts sector, the deal reduces the amount of content each car must contain that must be produced in TPP-member countries in order to qualify. New cars built under this deal may use auto parts from cheap TPP producers such as Malaysia or Vietnam to make up as much as 55 per cent of their content, meaning Canadian producers will be challenged to compete.

Food: Foreign milk and poultry producers have been given a tiny window into the Canadian marketplace as part of this deal. Canada uses a supply management system for dairy, poultry and turkey producers, which ensures the survival of family-owned farms but leads to higher prices at grocery stores.

As part of the deal, foreign producers will be able to export dairy products to Canada, up to 3.25 per cent of Canada’s annual production, eggs up to 2.3 per cent of Canada’s annual production, chicken up to 2.1 per cent of Canada’s annual production, and turkey up to 2 per cent of Canada’s annual production.

Though the percentages are small, it’s safe to say the deal will lead to new arrivals at a nearby grocery store. For instance, 3.25 per cent of Canada’s annual dairy production in 2012 amounted to 260 million litres of milk, according to Statistics Canada.

Agricultural producers in Canada will be offered income protection and other assistance once the deal comes into effect. The assistance is meant to ensure the continued survival of family dairy and poultry farms, which have been protected for decades by high tariffs and marketing boards that help producers predict prices by controlling supply.

Drugs: Patent protections for new drugs under this deal remain the same as current Canadian rules, meaning pharmaceutical companies will be able to hold a monopoly on newly-released drugs for eight years, three years longer than countries such as Australia wanted. It means prices for advanced prescription drugs in Canada won’t go down because of this deal.

China could opt to join in future: World leaders involved in the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal have reportedly invited China to join in the future. It means Canadian consumers could someday enjoy lower prices on the already large amount of consumer goods, clothing and personal technology products exported here.

When will TPP take effect: Terms of the deal, which has not yet been made public, still must be edited by a crush of lawyers representing the 12 countries involved. After that, the legislature in each signing nation must vote on whether to ratify the deal, meaning the terms of the deal might take years to come into effect.

The Toronto Region Board of Trade urged lawmakers to quickly vote yes on the deal. “The next Parliament should move quickly to endorse this 21st century agreement that opens Canada up — not only to Japan, the world’s third largest economy — but to important new markets in Asia and Latin America.” Meanwhile, the National Farmers Union slammed the tentative deal on Monday afternoon, saying that the large amount of money the government has set aside to assist farmers over the next 15 years - $4.3 billion in all – “suggests the intent (of TPP) is to completely dismantle dairy supply management over the next 10 years.”