Brand Canada isn't any one brand, it's many brands.  Simon Anholt has written extensively on the multiple dimensions of Nation Brands, and we thought it might be interesting to take a look at the efforts by various sectors of the Canadian business and political worlds to see how they're contirbuting to each spoke of the Nation Brand matrix.  Are they competing with or complementing each other?

The Canadian Tourism Commission recently launched Brand Canada as a destination brand.

Aquaculture Canada, the Canadian Aquaculture Alliance,  has entered the arena with a "product origin" brand.

• Symbol of Quality and Safety Assurance
• Symbol of Product Traceability
• Symbol of Environmentally Responsible Farming

Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada manages a cross-industry initiative to promote Canadian exports:

• Raising the profile and improving the image of Canada internationally at trade shows recognized as vital to their industries;
• Promoting Canada's "brand image" and improving Canada's credibility among foreign buyers and decision makers present at these trade shows; and
• Contributing to the impact for participating Canadian companies (i.e., on export sales, solid contacts, trade leads and market intelligence).

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada has developed a Canada Brand to brand Canada's food and agriculture sectors in international markets.

• our products are excellent
• as a multi-cultural country we focus on customers and respond to the needs of our international clients
• as an industry, we are committed to continuous improvements

The Canadian Pork Industry developed its own version of Brand Canada for the Japanese market after regulators required the origin of food products to be labeled.  From a Pork standpoint, Brand Canada focuses on "the Canadian advantages highlighting the quality, taste and safety of Canadian pork."

The Canadian Advanced Technology Alliance recently organized the Advantage Canada Summit: a full-day forum that brought together a Pan-Canadian assembly of recognized public, private, academic and labour leaders to develop a Canadian Brand: a defining statement that clearly describes Canada's value proposition as a global sourcing destination of choice and differentiates the Country from competing Nations.

Roots describes itself as "Canada's #1 Brand"

Richard Nimijean, writing in Inroads, offers a political view of Brand Canada, suggesting that former Prime Minister Jean Chretien played a key role in creating the notion of a nation brand in Canada:

"The case of Canada under Jean Chrétien's leadership shows that framing public policy in terms of national identity and national values can be used not only to promote international competitiveness or interests of state but also to advance narrow partisan interests."