Differences in history and institutional structure have contributed to differences in agricultural and resource policy in Canada and the United States. These are one source of some differences in stance toward trade policy taken by these two nations. Trade conflicts and tensions have also arisen from the increasing integration of North American agriculture and food sectors. In Canada, trade policy has dominated farm policy for most agricultural sectors, but not for the supply-managed dairy, egg and poultry sectors. Future prospects for the forthcoming multilateral trade negotiations are of considerable interest in view of the impact that these may have on agricultural policy in both nations. Increasingly, however, agricultural and resource policy in North America is focussing on issues of the environment associated with agriculture and on policy related to food, rather than on the traditional concerns related to farmers’ interests.