India’s decision to slap a 50 per cent tariff on pea imports came without warning, Canada’s agriculture minister said Thursday – with several ministers vowing Ottawa will work quickly to fix an escalating trade spat between the two countries.

“We are extremely concerned over India’s increase in duties by 50 per cent of all imported peas without providing any advanced notice,” Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay told the House of Commons in question period.

Indian officials announced Wednesday it was imposing a 50 per cent tariff on all pea imports effective immediately. The tariff caught Canadian industry officials by surprise. Pulse Canada has said the tariffs are the highest allowed amount under World Trade Organization rules.

“We are raising this issue aggressively at every stage. In our view the position taken by India has no justification and we will work very, very hard to maintain our market access,” Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale told reporters before question period.

“The prime minister will undoubtably be raising it the first opportunity he gets,” Goodale said. Goodale’s home province of Saskatchewan is a major pulse exporter.

India’s decision to hike pea tariffs comes just days before three Canadian federal ministers are set to depart on a trade mission to that country.

International Trade Minister Francois Philippe Champagne, Transport Minister Marc Garneau and Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains will depart Monday for a five-day trade mission, focused on innovation. Canada’s agriculture minister is not on that trip. Instead, MacAulay leaves Friday for a two-week trade mission to China.

New Delhi’s latest trade actions also escalate an ongoing trade spat with Canada around fumigation requirements for pulse exports.

In June, India extended fumigation exemption orders for Canada, the United States and France. However, while the United States and France received six-month exemptions, Canadian exporters were only granted three months.

“We are fully aware of the importance of the exports of lentils to India, but it was a decision that was made by the government of India and we are working with the government of India to attempt to resolve this,” MacAulay told the House. “We don’t want to complicate the situation any more.”

Senior trade and agriculture officials have repeatedly travelled to India to try and come up with a long term fix to the pulse issue. MacAulay also has raised the matter with his Indian ministerial counterpart.

Ottawa had expected Canada’s order would be extended again when it expired at the end of September. The extension has yet to be granted, meaning Canadian pulse exporters are now required to pay a fumigation fee upon arrival at port.

Champagne told iPolitics in October he planned to raise the fumigation issue with India officials during his trade mission.

India is Canada’s largest market for pea exports and one of the largest for pulse exports, which include lentils. A third of Canadian pulse exports go to India – a sector valued at approximately $4 billion.

In the past three years, Canada has exported over a million tonnes of peas to India, with a value of $548 million in 2015.

With files from Canadian Press